It is now midsummer, and the peri-urban areas of the Golden Horseshoe are ripe with locally grown food, along with a bounty of crafted food products. At the peak of the growing season with vibrant farmers’ markets occurring almost daily, it is hard to imagine difficulty finding locally sourced food. However, one of the prevailing challenges in the Golden Horseshoe is connecting city dwellers with farmers and their fresh produce when markets aren’t as prevalent. It can be an even greater challenge to highlight the offerings of farmers that sell only at their farm gate or store.
To bridge the gap, the five regions and two cities participating in the Alliance can now boast their own ‘farm fresh’ maps and directories to show hungry, curious locals where they can buy good food directly from farmers – be it on-site at farm gates, farm stores or at markets. Local food processors such as bakers, butchers, and florists are featured in several of the maps and directories as well.
There are six regional farm maps – one from each Alliance region along with the City of Hamilton. Due to the small number of relevant farm sites within the City of Toronto, its resource focuses on the locations and schedules of farmers markets around the city (no vendor listings are included).
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Durham |
Map produced by Durham Farm Fresh.In addition to the map, the website also provides information on seasonal availability as well as directories of restaurants, retailers, CSAs, and more. |
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York |
Map produced in partnership with York Region Farm Fresh. A hard copy, pocket-size fold-out map is also available from information points. The map includes a listing of local farms where fresh fruits, vegetables, greens, meats, baked goods and flowers are available and in line with the growing season. |
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Peel |
Map produced by Peel Region for Grown in Peel.Their advanced search tool enables visitors to search by distances, travel times, specific products as well as categories. |
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Halton |
Simply Local – A Guide to Halton Farms. Explore the rest of the Simply Local – A Guide to Halton Farms website for additional information on seasonal availability, nursery and garden centres, farm safety tips, on-farm equestrian activities and more. A hardcopy map is also available (see site for details). |
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Niagara |
Farmers’ Market directory provided by Niagara Region with schedules. Niagara Local Food Coop provides a detailed directory organized by product type.The Niagara subset of the Greenbelt farmers listings also provides details on farm products and lets visitors build a travel itinerary. |
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City of Hamilton |
Vendors list provided by the City of Hamilton for planning farmers’ market visits.Map developed by Hamilton Eat Local, part of Environment Hamilton. Please note: the advanced search function still being developed but the interactive directory is up! |
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City of Toronto |
Information about farmers’ markets in the city and links to other farmers’ market listings in the region and province. |
Regional offices have developed these maps and accompanying resources in partnership with the public health units. York Region’s Economic Development office took the lead on their project as a partnership between the municipal government and farm community.
Hard copies of some of the maps are available at regional offices and tourism information areas. Details are available on the regions’ websites. As well, some of the online maps are designed to be interactive, linking up with directories to enable searches by product type and other variables.
Additional useful resources for larger-scale searches include the Ontario Farm Fresh Farm Locator and the Fresh Food Finder on Greenbeltfresh.ca. Looking for wholesale quantities? Sign up for partner site Ontariofresh.ca, a business-to-business local food online marketplace, and use their advanced search tools.
With all of the information at your fingertips, you could be an armchair traveller, except that the featured fresh food wouldn’t make it to your taste buds! Check out the maps and resources on offer to see how you can experience the flavours emerging from the soil and kitchens of your town’s neighbouring areas while supporting local businesses.
Read about similar Good News Stories that reflect the Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Action Plan – Opportunities for Change, Theme D: Enable the Cluster
About the Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance
The Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance (GHFFA) is comprised of the Niagara Agricultural Task Force, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, the Friends of the Greenbelt, the Ontario Ministry of Food and Agriculture, the Regions of Durham, Halton, Niagara, Peel, York and the Cities of Hamilton and Toronto, as well as local representatives from the food and farming value chain. In 2012, the GHFFA released the Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Action Plan 2021, which identifies pathways for a more integrated and coordinated approach to food and farming viability in the area to ensure that the Golden Horseshoe retains, enhances and expands its role as a leading food and farming cluster. Visit our website at foodandfarming.ca and follow us on Twitter @GHfoodfarming.
About the Greater Toronto Area Agricultural Action Committee
The Greater Toronto Area Agricultural Action Committee (GTA AAC) is a unique partnership involving the four regional municipalities of Halton, Peel, York and Durham, the four Greater Toronto Area Federations of Agriculture (Halton, Peel, York and Durham), the City of Toronto, the Toronto Food Policy Council, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture and Food and the Ministry of Rural Affairs; Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada; and the food sector. The partnership developed as the various stakeholders worked together to write the GTA Agricultural Action Plan.
Visit our website at foodandfarming.ca/gtaaac and follow us on Twitter @gtaAgAction.