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Conserver Society of Hamilton

Environment Hamilton Eat Local

Grants Made:

$50,000 - November 22, 2010

With over 80% of Hamilton’s land base designated as rural area, Hamilton is well equipped to feed itself locally and sustainably.

http://environmenthamilton.org/eatlocal

Formed in 2005, Hamilton Eat Local utilizes the Hamilton Eat Local Farm Map & Directory and the Hamilton Fruit Tree Project to encourage residents of Hamilton to buy locally grown food.

Expanding on the Hamilton Eat Local project, this undertaking implements Greenbelt-grown food procurement systems in elementary, secondary and post-secondary schools and the municipal government, in order to secure the long-term viability of local agriculture and the Greenbelt in the Hamilton area.

 

The Greenbelt Foundation is

  • Bringing thousands of Ontarians out into the Greenbelt each year through grantee activities and the Annual Tour de Greenbelt cycling event

  • Engaged Hamilton schools to switch to Greenbelt food for their students

  • Supporting food policy council in Durham to create food charter

  • Supporting the creation of an award-winning Greenbelt granola bar

  • Funding policy changes to encourage more local food to be sold in Durham

  • Contributing to greater sales of Greenbelt wines at the LCBO

  • Contributing $2.65 million to Greenbelt farmers to improve their operations (leveraging millions of dollars from federal sources), and to employ the opportunities of the Green Energy Act

  • Building a local food economy from developing new markets to enhancing distribution channels

  • Funding visionary planning processes such as the new Cootes to Escarpment Park Management Plan, and a massive reforestation plan in Rouge Park

  • Hosting the successful Tour de Greenbelt to promote Ontario’s Greenbelt as a tourism destination

  • Supporting the creation of new multi-cultural crops and development of ethnic local food guides in Toronto and York Region

  • Partnering with Harbourfront Centre to tell the story of Ontario’s Greenbelt to 12 million people via a year-long, outdoor photography exhibit

  • Enhancing Farmers’ Markets, increasing sales for farmers in the Greenbelt and beyond

  • Creating Greenbeltfresh.ca, the leading electronic marketplace to source local, Greenbelt foods from over 600 producers

  • Reaching over 75 million by placing 220 permanent highway and regional road signs to ensure Ontarians and visitors know about this valuable protected area

  • Bridging farming and hiking interests to acknowledge environmental progress by farmers

  • Creating a network of Farmer’s Markets to help improve our local food economy

  • Securing local food procurement commitments for Peel, U of T. City of Toronto Facilities and Markham

  • Supporting the development of multi-cultural crops and training new Canadian Farmers

  • Providing grants and support to significantly increase sales at farmers’ markets

  • Successfully merging social welfare initiatives with environmental concerns

  • Identifying barriers to opening markets for Greenbelt farmers and proposing solutions

  • Supporting interested Greenbelt Farmers to Go Organic

  • Securing local food procurement commitments for Peel schools, City of Toronto, City of Markham and others

  • Supporting tourism initiatives including in the Niagara and Caledon areas

  • Funding research and analysis on greenbelts around the globe which concluded that Ontario’s Greenbelt is the most robust in the world, with a strong legal and policy framework

  • Supporting development of action plans for a variety of agricultural areas and commodities

  • Hosted the first ever Global Greenbelts Conference in Toronto in March 2011 with speakers and delegates from over nine countries

  • Developing a successful culinary tourism platform for Niagara

  • Assisting in designing new policies to protect Lake Simcoe through timely research

  • Supporting the Credit Valley Conservation Authority to protect and restore wetlands

  • Increasing amount of Greenbelt food in food share program 140%

  • Convincing Peel school boards to buy Greenbelt food for students

  • Supporting the Ontario Greenbelt Alliance to foster strong Greenbelt Plan implementation at the municipal level

  • Funding the Holland Marsh Growers’ transition from an export, commodity focus to one that serves the local market with value- added products

  • Engaging with over 170 million Ontarians directly through our marketing, events and communications activities

  • Participating strategically in growing the Greenbelt by working with Toronto, Peel, Halton, and Guelph

  • Supporting changing the City of Toronto policy to adopt a local food purchasing bylaw for city facilities

 
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