From farm to table, and everywhere in between
Supporting Island families -
Matt Dykerman hopes that creating a division of Farm & Food Care in Prince Edward Island will help teach Islanders where their food comes from, including family farms like his.
“Sometimes in the busyness, farmers like myself can forget to share our stories with the people who are consuming the fruits of our labour,” said Dykerman, owner of Red Soil Organics in Brookfield. “I am hopeful that Farm & Food Care PEI will engage consumers in a meaningful discussion on how food is produced and the hard work that goes into making it grow.”
Farm & Food Care is a coalition of farmers, agriculture and food partners and government working together to provide credible information on food and farming. Prince Edward Island is the third Canadian province to launch the organization, and the provincial government will invest $100,000 in it over the next year.
“The food industry is a key contributor to the PEI economy, as Canada’s Food Island, government wants to ensure the public has continued trust in its food and producers,” Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Alan McIsaac said. “We’re very pleased to welcome Farm & Food Care to our province. It will help Islanders understand more about our province’s food system and develop a greater understanding for how food gets from farm to table.”
Farm & Food Care will be active in promotion, education, program development and consumer outreach. Some of its planned activities include hosting farm tours and Breakfast on the Farm programs, assisting with distribution of the nationally acclaimed The Real Dirt on Farming publication and more.
“Farm & Food Care will develop reliable and accurate resources for consumers,” said David Mol, president of the PEI Federation of Agriculture. “These efforts will include events that allow consumers to engage with PEI’s food production, the sharing of credible information on food and farming, and resource development for public outreach.”
Ontario was the first province to launch Farm & Food Care in 2012 followed by Saskatchewan in 2014. For more information, visit www.FarmFoodCare.org.
Media contacts:
Hillary MacDonald
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
hpsmacdonald@gov.pe.ca
Kayla Nieuwhof
PEI Federation of Agriculture, Farm & Food Care Coordinator
kayla@peifa.ca