Food plan: a strategic approach to enhancing the viability of the Calgary local food system
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2011
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Abstract
Spurred by fears about the safety and reliability of the food supply and a rising awareness about the impact of food choices on the environment and local economy, Calgarians have increasingly embraced the local food movement in recent years. In 2006 during public consultations on creating a long-term sustainability plan for Calgary, Calgarians voiced their interest in local food and contributed to the elaboration of a set of 30-year targets through the ImagineCaIgaiy Plan. This Master Degree Project (MDP) undertakes a strategic analysis of the viability of the Calgary local food system and explores its ability to meet the 30-year targets in the plan. Through a modified approach to scenario planning, this MDP explores the potential impacts of four driving forces—climate change, population and demographic change, global demand for oil, and the sustainability and healthy living movement—on supply and demand within the local food system and what this will mean for achieving the food system goals expressed in the plan. Methods employed include key informant interviews, document review, participant observation, and an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) of the system under the influence of the four drivers. Several key issues are identified with respect to securing the viability of the local food system. Among these are questions related to the appropriateness of the lmagineCalgary goals themselves; the limited supply of local food; development pressures on agricultural land; the variability of consumer demand; the declining economic viability of the farming industry; and weak institutional supports for local producers in Alberta. In response to these issues, a number of strategic recommendations are proposed. Recommendations consist of: • Creating the local food experience • Promoting producer cooperatives • Expanding the greenhouse industry • Facilitating green energy generation on farms • Creating space for local food system activities • Tailoring research and education to the needs of local food system actors • Developing local food policy for Calgary.
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Bibliography: p. 212-224
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Citation
Bailey, O. (2011). Food plan: a strategic approach to enhancing the viability of the Calgary local food system (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/4844