toronto food strategy

Toronto Food StrategyBring Food Home

Barbara Emanuel

November, 2013

Toronto Food Strategy

Spearheaded by TPH to foster healthy & sustainable food system

City of Toronto’s Existing Food Connections

Toronto Food Strategy Approach

Build/strengthen networks by doing things together

Leveraging resources

Top down & bottom up strategiesfor change

Research & evaluation

Food Environment Mapping

Better understanding of spatial relationships among income, food access, etc

Changing the discussionon “food deserts”

Inadequate access to public transit

Few Amenities in Walking Distance

Low Household Income

Lack of Green Spaces

Few Healthy Affordable Food Sources

MRFEI Scores & Low Income

Lotherton Pathway, Toronto – Closest discount grocery 2.5km

Problem in Toronto is NOT quantity of food stores but quality of retail in many areas

Less healthy food retail envir’t common across Toronto

Many lower income areas have low MRFEI but income does not predict food envir’t score

Schools more likely to have fast food within 500m/1km vs surrounding areas

Findings So Far

Density in problem areas doesn’t fit with traditional big food retail models (but they’re trying to adapt)

“Progressive” regulatory legacies can impede alternate food distribution models today

Little support for small food enterprises

Explanations?

Mobile Good Food Market

Leveraging City Assets

Working with Existing

Small Food Retailers

Healthier Corner Stores

Approx 8 convenience stores in Toronto for every supermarket

Kabul Market- Scarborough

Kabul Market- Scarborough

Newark, NJ

Harlem, NY

Wide variation in small food store models

Many practical barriers for owners to integrating healthier foods

Residents value customer service highly

Insights from Research So Far

Very little institutional support exists for small-scale food retail

Many store owners keen to serve community, provide healthier foods

Most successful examples we saw prioritized positive relationships with customers

Insights from Research So Far

Community Consultations

Examples of apt tower communities in GermanySource: ERA Architects (2010). Tower Neighbourhood Renewal in the Greater Golden Horseshoe

Food Skills & Employability Training

Integrating food safety, nutrition & employment training skills

MANY OF THESE VEGGIES CAN BE GROWN HERE

Locally Grown World Crops

Policies on Access to Land & Infrastructure

Researching solutions for more cost-effective purchasing of healthier foods by community agencies & City programs

Community Food Procurement

Barbara Emanuel, ManagerToronto Food Strategybemanuel@toronto.ca416-392-7464