[WRFoodNews] October 27, 2009 Waterloo Region Food System update

Please find below the latest update on Waterloo Region's food system as described on the website of the Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable at www.wrfoodsystem.ca. 

1.  Last Call for Nominations for Food System Roundtable 
The Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable is seeking nominations to fill vacancies in its membership. The terms of ten current members are expiring at the end of 2009, at at least some of them will not be seeking to renew their term.  The vacant positions are two-year terms, beginning in 2010.  Nominations are due by this Friday, October 30th, and final membership decisions will be made on November 18th.  For more information, see the Call for Nominations. 

2. Say Bye to Buy Local 
CUPE Ontario and the Council of Canadians have launched a campaign to raise awareness of the impact of several recent trade deals which could affect the ability of municipal and provincial governments to give preference to local and sustainable foods (and any other contract that preferences local suppliers).  Maude Barlow and Sid Ryan spoke in Kitchener on October 19th to a room of almost 100 people, and we are bound to hear much more about these deals.  They have produced a primer on how these secret trade deals "threaten our local economies, jobs, and the environment" which can be found at: http://www.cupe.on.ca/doc.php?subject_id=188&lang=en. 

3. Organic Turkey Farming being effectively banned 
The Turkey Farmers of Ontario, the official supply-management board, is implementing new rules that force producers to confine their flock at all times. This means that farmers with a flock larger than 50 (who have to buy quota) can no longer raise organic or pastured turkeys. The rule was appealed to the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, but it was upheld.  See links to various perspectives on the story at http://www.wrfoodsystem.ca/index.php?p=forum/view_thread&thread_id=10342. 

4. 125+ Registrations for Waterloo Region Food Summit 
Registrations continue to pour in for the two-day Summit which aims to address hunger in Waterloo Region.  The event, to be held November 16 & 17 at the Victoria Park Pavilion in Kitchener, will feature Elbert Van Donkersgoed of the Locavore News and Katherine Scharf of The STOP Community Food Centre in Toronto.  Tuesday's deliberations will be focused on identifying priority actions for increasing food access and food security in Waterloo Region.  For more information and to register, seehttp://www.wrfoodsystem.ca/index.php?p=61. 

5. Upcoming Food Events
Full details on upcoming food-related events in Waterloo Region can be viewed under Upcoming Events on the Roundtable's website.  To share news of your event, email details to the Roundtable's Site Administrator, who will post it to the website.  Some upcoming highlights include:

             What's on the Label?  What's on your Plate? - **TONIGHT** Tuesday, October 27, 7pm, Kitchener Public Library 
             The True Value of Organic - Saturday, November 14, 10am-3pmClub Willowels, Waterloo 
             Waterloo Region Food Summit - Monday and Tuesday, November 16-17, Victoria Park Pavilion, Kitchener 
              Urban Agriculture Symposium - Friday, November 20, 8:30am-5pm, University of Guelph 

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