Food Security

Links and Resources

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Life Cycles Victoria
Powell River Food Security Project
The new Perennial Club
Community Kitchens

The Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council fisheries department (Uu-a-thluk) is launching a traditional foods toolkit that contains exclusive content for harvesting, preparing and eating traditional foods found on Vancouver Island’s west coast. These foods include sockeye salmon, herring spawn, goose barnacles, sea urchins, chitons, wild roots, and eelgrass.

The guides are on sale through the Uu-a-thluk website in downloadable formats. Proceeds go towards education and training programs for youth and others in Nuu-chah-nulth Nations.
                          Visit www.uuathluk.ca.

  • The Vancouver Island Health Authority - Food Security web pages have definitions, descriptions of initiatives and helpful links to other sites.
  • Every Lawn a Garden - Their objective is to help persons increase their capacity for gardening so that everyone can reach the stage of growing some of their own food supply and to work with communities to support and encourage local food systems and increase food security.
  • BC Healthy Communities - supports communities and community groups that are working on Healthy Community-related initiatives in a number of ways:
  • Making Food Matter - a regional e-newsletter produced and distributed by the Capital Region Food and Agriculture Initiatives Roundtable (CR-FAIR) and the CRD Roundtable on the Environment – Healthy Communities Subcommittee. You can view the latest issue HERE or have it emailed to you.
  • The BC Food Systems Network - formed in September, 1999, to link people all over the province involved in community-level action related to food. In keeping with the holistic perspective of the local food security and food policy organizations, the Network emphasizes the way in which food issues cross cultures, sectors and age groups. Through an email network and annual meetings, we share insights, initiatives, strategies and critical analysis of events in the food system and our own work. 
  • Vancouver Food Policy Council - in 2004 Vancouver City Council adopted a motion to promote and create a just and sustainable food system through the creation of the Vancouver Food Policy Council. 
  • Foodlink is a non-profit organization in the Waterloo area that creates partnerships with food producers, processors, retailers and consumers to promote the sale and consumption of locally grown and produced food. In building a “food localism” movement, Foodlink is expanding and creating new markets for local farms and farm-based businesses while also building a demand for local food products. The Local Harvest Newsletter is an electronic publication featuring seasonal food, local farms and agricultural issues. Back issues are available for download on their website. 
  • Seed Map: Food, Farmers and Climate Chaos - The Seed Map is a teaching and advocacy tool designed to show the state of global agro-biodiversity. It identifies threats to the world’s seed and biodiversity systems and highlights regions where people are fighting to protect biodiversity – and winning! To order your copy, visit www.usc-canada.org or call 1-800-565 6827 ext.228 (or 613-234 6827 in Ottawa). 
  • The Children’s Health & Nutrition Initiative - launched on January 17, 2007 to build a broad-based coalition of diverse stakeholders that are passionate about Canada becoming a world leader in making safe and healthy food available to all children and reshaping social, cultural, economic and environmental influences to optimally support child health.
  • Health Canada’s Food and Nutrition pages
  • The Community Food Security Coalition - the (CFSC) is a non-profit North American organization dedicated to building strong, sustainable, local and regional food systems that ensure access to affordable, nutritious and culturally appropriate food for all people at all times. We seek to develop self-reliance among all communities in obtaining their food and to create a system of growing, manufacturing, processing, making available and selling food that is regionally based and grounded in the principles of justice, democracy and sustainability.
  • The Association for the Study of Food & Society (ASFS) - is a multi-disciplinary international organization dedicated to exploring the complex relationships between food, culture and society. 

Resources for People in Need

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One - Stop Drop - In at the CV Nursing Centre
250-331-8502
615 10th Street, Courtenay –
The second Friday of each month. 1:00 – 4:00pm.
Connect with food, shelter, advocacy & health care

Sonshine Lunch Club 250-334-4961
505 6th Street St. George’s United Church
For everyone: free lunch & food to take.
Mon, Wed, Thurs and Fri from 11:30am – 12:30pm

Salvation Army 250-338-5133
Lunch : Tues. from 11:30 tp 12:30pm at St. George’s

St George’s Pantry 250-334-4961
505 6th Street St. George’s United Church everyone:
Once every 4 weeks – free canned food.
Tuesday and Thursday from 9 – 11am

Food Bank 250-338-0615
1755B 13th Street (bring your own grocery bags)
Mon - Wed. 9:30am – 12pm, Friday 9:30 – 11am
Thursday – Distribution Day from 9:30am – 1pm

Good Samaritan Kitchen 250-334-2727
1640 Burgess Road
Soup & Sandwich: Saturday from 11:30am – 1pm

Upper Island Women Native Ancestry 250-338-9591
1509 Cliffe – for aboriginal children & families
Free Lunch Program: Tuesday from 11:30am – 1pm
Busy Bear: Wed, Thur & Fri from 10:30a.m.-1p.m.

Comox Valley Transition Society 250-897-0511
202 – 576 England - Women Only
Provides light lunches every Tues from 11:30am –
2:00pm and also provides free hygiene products.
Vouchers available for clothes and housewares at their Too Good

Salvation Army Family Services 250-338-5133
2966 Kilpatrick Avenue - Food, emergency shelter,
clothing, furniture and other emergency aid.
Monday – Thursday 9am – 4:30pm (closed 12 – 1pm)
Appointments are required. ID and proof of residence is required.

FREE CLOTHING

Good Samaritan Free Store 250-334-2727
1640 Burgess Road Northgate Foursquare Church
For everyone – free clothing or exchange.
Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday from 10:30am – 2pm.

Courtenay Baptist Church 250-334-3432
2963 Lake Trail Road Free clothing room.
Tuesday from 1 – 3pm & Sunday from 10:30 – 11am.
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