The National Farmers Union has made a plea for national food sovereignty in its response to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s food policy announcement and the opening of negotiations for the next five-year food policy framework.
growing local markets and regional trade, food security through food sovereignty, long-term public agriculture research and climate resilience.
Farmers need a food sovereignty policy that supports new farmers, a diversity of farm products and practices, and fair prices for the food they produce for both domestic and export markets, the NFU said.
The NFU is encouraging the federal, provincial and territorial ministers of agriculture to define food sovereignty as “the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems.”
“A successful food sovereignty policy will address corporate power in the agriculture sector, declining farm incomes, generational renewal, and climate resilience,” said NFU vice-president Phil Mount.
The next five-year policy must be guided by the principles of resilience, renewal, sovereignty, and diversity,” said NFU president Jenn Pfenning,.
The NFU said it must prioritize five policy pillars: generational renewal, growing local markets and regional trade, food security through food sovereignty, long-term public agriculture research and climate resilience.
