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Mr. Francis Drouin (Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, Lib.)

04:50:59 p.m.
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I will just say that the small group of Anita's friends involved in Food Day Canada are seized with this education piece going forward. Thanks.

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04:51:18 p.m.
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Thank you, Mr. Chair. I do want to thank Senator Black for introducing the bill in the Senate, and obviously thank Mr. Nater for sponsoring that bill. I do have to congratulate both of you. You are probably the only senator and MP to reunite Mr. Turnbull and Mr. Barlow at the same table in agreeing on one bill, so congratulations. This question is for both of you. You've talked about the legacy of Anita Stewart. What's one thing you would like to see happening across Canada every Saturday of the long weekend when we do celebrate Food Day in Canada?

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04:52:11 p.m.
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From my perspective, I'd like to see us acknowledge and recognize the continuum from farmer to plate. Whether it's your plate and what you've cooked on a barbeque or whether it's us enjoying something at a restaurant, the legacy of food and cuisine in Canada would be my desire. I remember having a discussion with Anita on her back deck not long before she passed. Her desire was to see a food day in Canada nationally. Those were almost her words, so I would just echo that.

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Ms. Leah Taylor Roy (Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill, Lib.)

04:52:52 p.m.
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To build on what Senator Black said, I think it's the sheer ability to share a meal and break bread with those around you. Whether it's with a family member, whether it's with a neighbour, whether it's at a community gathering or whether it's with a complete stranger, I think that ability to share a meal together and bond over that shared experience is so important. One of the events I like to attend every year in my riding is a meal called “To Stratford With Love”. Every year, just before Christmas, 1,800 people come together and share a meal. It's like a large family dinner. You come together and share a meal together. You get to know people you frankly have never met before. To everyone in that room, you're all neighbours. You're all family. You're all coming together. I think the ability to share that bond over a meal is so important. Frankly, sometimes we've lost that in recent times, especially with the challenges from the pandemic over the last two years. The ability to come and share a meal together is so important. Thank you for that question, Mr. Drouin.

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Mr. Francis Drouin

04:53:50 p.m.
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Great. Thank you. Again, Mr. Barlow and I may want to put a friendly amendment in that bill just to ensure that Foothills and Glengarry—Prescott—Russell are the best ridings for agriculture. I'm just kidding; we know that the process would have to go back to the Senate, and we definitely do not want to do that. I'm hearing from you that it doesn't matter how we would celebrate Food Day in Canada. It's just a matter of people telling the story of food across Canada, whether it's a farmer demonstrating what they're doing on their farm or a chef demonstrating how they're cooking food or whatnot. I want to salute your efforts. As I think the chair has already acknowledged, it's a one-liner bill. It's simple. I'm not going to ask any more questions. I think both of you have done an amazing job of telling us about the story and legacy of Anita Stewart. I want to thank you. As I've announced before, I will definitely be supporting this bill. Thank you, Mr. Chair. It's back to you.

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04:55:00 p.m.
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I was going to ask a question very much along the lines of my colleagues. Sharing a meal with people is something we do often, although you're right that it's maybe not so much since the pandemic. When I read about Anita Stewart and what her mission was and when I was listening to you read the letter from her sons, it seemed like a lot of the emphasis was on local Canadian food. She was also focused on healthy food, environmental sustainability, diversity and labour conditions. I'm wondering if there is any angle that focuses more on the local or the environmental part, because that seems to be her legacy. You also mentioned the small group of friends. Is there anything on that side that we'll be celebrating as well? Thank you.

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04:55:47 p.m.
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I'll start, and I'm sure Senator Black would like to chime in as well. Just two seconds ago we talked about.... She was the University of Guelph's first food laureate. The food lab at the University of Guelph is now named in her honour, which I think is simply exceptional. The focus on Canadian food and local food is absolutely essential and a core of what Food Day in Canada would be, building on the legacy of Anita Stewart. If you read some of the stories about Anita, you'll see she took great joy in travelling the country and experiencing unique, culturally appropriate, different regional food sources first-hand. I think that's one of the exciting celebrations of this. Local food is different for people in different regions and in different cultures. Experiencing that angle is just so important. Second, on the local and environmental side of things, especially coming from rural ridings and rural communities like ours, it's just so important that we see that in our own backyard. Organizations like Food Centres Canada and The Local Community Food Centre in Stratford provide that local dynamic. They provide the ability to learn how to use local ingredients to go beyond simply providing a meal to actually knowing what goes into that meal, how it's prepared and where that food comes from. I'll turn it over to the senator.

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04:57:04 p.m.
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Sure. Very quickly, she was a food laureate at the University of Guelph, and they have not filled that position yet because it takes a special person to do that. She put her heart and soul into that role of food laureate. Her cookbooks are all Canadian, and each of them tells a story. I remember reading and hearing her talk about travelling the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, catching fish and then cooking them locally. She always ate local. Her idea was that Canadian cuisine has a story to tell. That's what she wanted to see done.

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04:58:01 p.m.
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Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you to the witnesses for coming. As I wouldn't want my riding to be one of the few not to be mentioned today, I would ask my colleagues not to underestimate the agri-food potential of Berthier—Maskinongé, the most beautiful riding in the world. Mr. Black and Mr. Nater, congratulations on this initiative. I don't think local food is ever assigned the importance it deserves. I understand the reason for the date change, but can you tell me why Bill C‑281 was rejected in the 42nd Parliament?

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04:58:44 p.m.
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I can. Bill C-281 did come to the Senate and was referred to the agriculture committee. There was an amendment that changed the date to August. It came back to the Senate and did not pass there before Parliament was prorogued. That's the only reason.

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04:59:12 p.m.
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Once more, something that was done properly the first time will have to be redone yet again. I still have some questions for you. I understand the intent of Food Day in Canada, which is to promote farm production and inform the general population about how food is produced, where it is produced, and the chain that gets food from the farm to the table. All of that is excellent. So why was “National Food Day” changed to “Food Day in Canada”? It strikes me that “local food” would have been quite accurate too.

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04:59:57 p.m.
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That's a good question. In English, the name of the day reflects how Ms. Stewart had baptized it when it was established in 2003 as Food Day Canada. In French, it's Journée canadienne de l'alimentation. The intent is to promote local food. We are really talking about food found in our respective communities.

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05:00:34 p.m.
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I understand. So the goal has not changed. The day chosen is already called Food Day Canada. It's already a day designed to promote production in certain areas. Do you think this new day will compete with the other or will it be complementary and contribute to the focus on local food? I'd like to hear your comments on that.

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05:01:05 p.m.
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From my perspective, as I noted in my notes, there are a number of provincial days, a number of special days. We have Local Food Week in Ontario, just ahead of Thanksgiving. Other provinces have other days. I think it's complementary, and I think any day that we can celebrate food, Canadian cuisine and local food is an important one. This day is one day across Canada that we can stop and call a national day.

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05:01:47 p.m.
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I understand the intent. I believe it's fairly obvious that I'm in favour of the initiative. But that doesn't prevent us from trying to improve things. What needs to be done to make this day special? As you pointed out in your response, there are already all kinds of days devoted to all kinds of things. I don't know whether my parliamentary colleagues have experienced what I have as I tried to keep track of all this on social networks, but at a certain point, you let it go. There are so many days for so many things that they become less meaningful in the end. If we want this day to have a positive and profitable impact on agriculture, then special events need to be organized. It needs to be promoted in a particular way. Have you discussed this? Have you thought about adding something about that in your bill? Or is the general idea satisfactory to you and you feel that everything will fall into place automatically?

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05:02:48 p.m.
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As I noted, there is a small group of friends of Anita Stewart who have carried on this day and who are driving this thing. I participate in some of their meetings, and I can share with you that the group has many things they have planned for the future. As Mr. Nater noted, a number of sites across Canada were lit up in red and white, and that list is growing and has grown over the last five or six years, so they're working on that. Social media are significant on the days leading up to, and on the day of, Food Day Canada. I anticipate greater things moving forward. I am excited to share with you that I think we've just begun. We, the small group, have just begun to make this a bigger thing across Canada on that Saturday in August.

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Mr. Alistair MacGregor (Cowichan—Malahat—Langford, NDP)

05:03:55 p.m.
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I would add that it's important to establish partnerships.

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05:04:07 p.m.
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Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Senator Black and Mr. Nater, thanks for being here. I can remember being at this committee four years ago in June of 2018 when Mr. Stetski was before our committee. He was an NDP colleague of mine, and it's nice to see, Senator Black, that you're carrying it forward, and I think we have a real shot of getting this into law. Congratulations to you both. It's not like we have to take a really deep dive into this bill; it's pretty straightforward. I do want to ask one thing. Everyone who has spoken so far has talked about the agricultural bounty of their ridings. Cowichan—Malahat—Langford in the Hul'q'umi'num tongue means “warm land”, and I believe we are the only Mediterranean-style climate in all of Canada, so we are definitely right up there. I am on the coast, and we associate a lot of our food bounty with the ocean. I know I have everyone around this table beat with the best salmon fishing. You cannot beat the west coast salmon fishing off Port Renfrew in my riding, and it's incredibly important to local first nations. The Cowichan tribes are the largest first nation in all of British Columbia. I have a very high indigenous population in my riding, and a lot of their culturally and historically important food sources are all associated with the bounty that the ocean provides. Mr. Nater, you referenced culturally important food. Would both of you have some comments? I know we tend to focus a lot on agriculture, but we also have to realize that this country's natural bounty is also there for enjoyment by all.

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