FAQS

What is Food Producers Forum and what does the group do?

We are a provincial non-profit society, founded in 2019, connecting and supporting food producers in our province at all levels, by providing them with a meeting place.   We operate as an information hub, bv using a range of tools to connect and inform everyone who grows or cares about healthy, local food.

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Who can join Food Producers Forum? Is it for farmers only?

We are not a membership-based group, however, our new website invites you to join our network, to participate in dialogue and learning, and to help us support local food production.   Our group does support commercial farmers while working in partnership with the provincial government and NL Federation of Agriculture, but we represent more than the commercial sector because we include home gardeners, community gardeners, foragers, hunters, and fishers.  In essence, we are here to support good food wherever it is grown or gathered.

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What projects has Food Producers Forum launched?

Since our founding in 2019, we have launched more than a dozen projects to support and expand local food production and to provide chances for learning by those who grow, gather and care about local, healthy food.   For full details, please visit our Projects page on this website.  In general, what we have done is to collect an interesting group for each project and give them creative control to develop new answers to basic needs at the community level.

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How are FPF project teams organized?

Every time we form a project team, it means we have identified a key need in the food landscape.  Teams are fully inclusive, welcoming people from multiple cultures and genders to work together creatively to find solutions.   We have been so successful with his method of organizing that we have been able to (a) organize a complicated 3-day online provincial conference with 32 presents run by volunteers with NO funding; (b) conducted the first-ever survey of community food producers in our province, and (c) launched the Provincial Food Network, to connect 15 communities across the province to exchange knowledge and mutual support for expanding local food production and education.

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Can I get involved with Food Producers Forum as a volunteer?

Yes, you can!   We are constantly looking for people who care about food sovereignty and food justice to join our teams.  It is simple: just send us an email and tell us who you are, where you live, and what skills you have.   We will find a way you can help us restore food security.  You will have fun working with us, while helping solve basic issues

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Where is Food Producers Forum based? Are you only in Newfoundland and Labrador?

While we do have strong links with national and international groups, all our work is focused and carried out right here in our own province.   Over the past several years, we have attended regional conferences in Atlantic Canada and have received project funding from provincial, federal, and international sources. We regularly connect with local, regional, and national groups working on food security, support for farming, and food distribution. We are a member organization of the Atlantic Food Action Coalition.

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Are there any workshops, courses, or mentorship programs coming up?

Yes, there are a whole series of educational activities taking place seasonally, right across the province.   Within the Provincial Food Network project, there are three sites (Western Environment Centre, Avalon Homesteading & the Mercy Centre for Ecology and Justice) located respectively in Corner Brook, Conception Bay South, and St. John's that are offering workshops in gardening, landscape design, seed saving, pruning, rainwater collection, food forests, recycling, composting and more!   We also have partner groups, including The Homestead at Flatrock, Memorial University Botanical Garden, and Common Ground Community Development who will be offering workshops.  In the near future, we hope to add a calendar of these activities to this website.  So keep an eye out for that by visiting our website.  in the meantime, you should contact each of the listed groups and sites to find out what workshops are coming soon.

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Are there any grants or funding opportunities available to new farmers?

There are a range of possible funding sources if you are moving into commercial farming.   For how to access these, it is best to contact the NL Federation of Agriculture.  Their Young Farmers project supports, trains, and informs people who are doing this.   You can also contact the provincial Department of Fisheries, Forestry, and Agriculture to find out about their funding programs.  Finally, we have seen many opportunities to apply for public or government funding to meet public needs, especially since COVID-19.   Searching online should reveal what is currently available.

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Can I donate or share extra food I grow?

With the rising cost of basic food, there has been a rush of new people to regional food banks.  Find the ones near you and connect with them, to donate food.  In the near future, we hope to create a province-wide food distribution system to transport food from where it is grown to where it is needed.  Once that system is operating, we will welcome your donations and add them to food that will be distributed cooperatively to those who need it most.

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Can I ask questions related to any aspect of growing and gathering food via email? If so, what email address should be used?

Yes, you can always email us at foodproducersforum@gmail.com and we will always answer.  But even better, for questions related to food production, go to our Connect page and join the online forums, led by knowledgeable people, to ask questions there.   That way we will all be learning alongside you.