2 min read
Written by Mark Xuereb
Originally posted on June 17th, 2011
Toronto City Council voted almost unanimously to update its Local Food Procurement Policy on July 12th, reaffirming its commitment to purchase food for City operations in a way that increases the percentage of food that is grown locally “when all factors, including costs, quality and availability are equal.”
The Council decision was under a lot of scrutiny after the Council’s Government Management Committee couldn’t agree on whether to recommend the staff report on the subject to Council at its June 28 meeting. Changes to the recommended motion and pressure from community groups including the Toronto Environmental Alliance, Food Forward, and the Toronto Food Policy Council helped influence Council to move forward with the policy.
An article in Now Magazine described many details about the decision, including quotes from Councilors and some of the community groups mentioned above:
http://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/news/story.cfm?content=181804
An article in Simcoe.com took the perspective of farmers in the Holland Marsh area, who sent a representative to speak to Toronto City Council encouraging them to continue and expand their buy local program, arguing that, as food prices continue to rise, local procurement will become a necessity rather than an option.
http://www.simcoe.com/news/local/article/1046719–toronto-plan-big-win-for-farmers
If you would like to read the full staff report, including a link to the report consultants hired by the City to determine the feasibility of buying more local food for City services, see:
http://app.toronto.ca/tmmis/viewAgendaItemHistory.do?item=2011.GM5.13