Canadian Centre for Food Integrity launched to connect farm gates to dinner plates

The Canadian Centre for Food Integrity. Image: CNW Group/Farm & Food Care.

With 50 per cent of Canadians unsure about whether our food system is going in the right direction, new research and an initiative unveiled today aims to set benchmarks for success in communicating with Canadians about our food and farming.

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The new Canadian Public Trust research highlights the rising cost of food and access to healthy affordable food as two top concerns for Canadians, above concerns for health care or the economy.  With 93 percent of Canadians saying they know little or nothing about farming, determining fact from fiction about our food continues to be a growing issue.

The study, which polled 2,510 Canadians, was released by the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity (CCFI) today at its launch and first annual Public Trust Summit in Ottawa.  CCFI is a new division of Farm & Food Care Canada, a charity with a vision to earn public trust in food and farming.

"We see a big opportunity ahead of us," says Farm & Food Care CEO Crystal Mackay. "With half our population unsure about our food system, and two thirds wanting to know more, the time is now to open up more dialogue and increase opportunities for credible conversations about our food in Canada.  After all, we all eat and deserve honest answers about our food choices." 

"Public demand for transparency keeps increasing for the whole food chain - from farmers through to food companies. We must be more responsive on questions regarding healthy, affordable food and how we produce it," said Mackay.  "The new CCFI will serve as a critical hub to help the Canadian food system better understand the public's questions and concerns and determine how to bridge the gap that currently exists between farm gates and dinner plates."

Mackay said, "Farm & Food Care and CCFI combine to be a unique coalition that brings partners together from coast to coast to provide credible information. It includes everyone from individual farmers and associations to food companies, governments and researchers."

With more Canadians wanting to know where their food comes from, what's in it and how it's grown, the time is right for this new Canadian initiative.  Visit www.foodintegrity.ca for more information on the organization's work and key findings from the Canadian Public Trust research. 
The new Canadian Centre for Food Integrity is a division of Farm & Food Care Canada and an affiliate of US-based The Center for Food Integrity.  Members and project partners, representing the diversity of the food system, are committed to providing accurate information and working together to address important issues in food and agriculture.  The Centre does not lobby or advocate for individual companies or brands. 

SOURCE Farm & Food Care