SickKids Buy Local Initiative, Toronto $50,000

The Hospital for Sick Children built a network of local suppliers focused on local and sustainable farming to source ingredients for new, seasonably based recipes and menus. Foodservice staff were trained on the new recipes as well as on the benefits of eating locally sourced food. Promotional materials to advertise local food to the broader SickKids community were also developed with the aim of generating excitement and interest among cafeteria customers.

University Growth, Listowel $50,000

Harmony Organic developed a number of tools to educate university students and the general public on the benefits of organic milk products. Videographers were sent to producers’ farms to produce educational videos for upload onto YouTube, Facebook, and the Harmony Organic’s website. Demonstrations of Harmony’s products were conducted at George Brown and Seneca Colleges, and at the Hospital for Sick Children.

GFS Tipping Point, Milton $257,524

Gordon Food Service (GFS) created a regional distribution system with Fresh Start Foods (FSF) to double their local food sales by 2016. FSF has three depots in London, Milton, and Ottawa that act as regional hubs. GFS Ontario developed new supply logistics procedures to enable all GFS Ontario and FSF customers to have access to regional foods through these hubs and through GFS Ontario food listings. GFS launched a comprehensive new IT and social media platform, making it easier for both GFS and Fresh Start Foods customers and sales reps to readily find Ontario items.

The Ontario Farm to School Challenge, Toronto $54,000

FoodShare Toronto and their partners engaged schools and school boards in a challenge to increase their local food purchases. The participating boards and schools were provided with online tools, guides, and webinars to assist them, and they hosted local food events across the province to bring together local farmers and buyers. FoodShare launched their Farm to School Challenge on Ontariofresh.ca, and undertook promotion to more than 500 schools, administrators, and school board officials across Ontario. After successfully completing the first round, the project partners decided to follow up with two more rounds in the spring and fall of 2013.

Eat Local, Cook Global $75,000

Compass Group Canada built on their previous success by developing a marketing strategy to educate and motivate the consumer to increase their purchase of local menu items. Compass produced and distributed entrance communication stands to more than 40 locations across Ontario in order to raise awareness and to promote sustainability and wellness. Compass also developed and executed an Eat Local 4 Seasons campaign that used seasonally relevant recipes and menu items. Finally, Compass created a marketing kit to promote local food awareness, and developed internationally-based cuisine using local ingredients.

Promote Ontario Foods , Thunder Bay $99,233

This project took the first step in bridging the gap between public sector purchasers, the agricultural community, and others in the food value chain in the Thunder Bay area. After a series of interviews with public institutions and producers, the City identified specific barriers to local food procurement in the broader public sector. One of these was the challenge of identifying and tracking local food purchases. A tool was developed to identify the amount of local food currently being purchased, providing a baseline that will allow them to track the amount of purchases over the course of the next year.

Building a Better Menu, Toronto $74,987

Aramark Canada Ltd. provides foodservices to approximately 300 broader public sector institutions across the province. Through this project Aramark developed and disseminated a booklet of 24 new locally-based recipes for healthcare and higher education facilities, with additional recipes in development when the project ended. They also launched a Who’s Your Farmer promotional campaign profiling specific farms in Ontario. Working with new supplier partners, Aramark Canada also developed a new signature local beef burger and a local paneer recipe.