About the Food-friendly Neighbourhoods Project

The Food-Friendly Neighbourhoods pilot project developed and implemented neighbourhood food plans for three pilot communities in northern Toronto: Lawrence Heights, Bathurst-Finch, and Weston-Mt. Dennis.

In recent years, there has been significant interest in system-wide food mapping and research, but little attention to local needs. This has left many neighbourhoods knowing that there are food gaps but with no direction on how to start making their communities more food-friendly. The project addressed this issue by providing a practical tool to help communities assess their food needs and initiate action at a local level.

With funding from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario’s Spark Advocacy Grant, the Food-Friendly Neighbourhoods project seeks to facilitate a coordinated approach to improving neighbourhood-level access to food. The food plans provide a tool that assists with evaluate local food assets and provides recommendations for action that will lead to better outcomes in these key asset areas over time.

These plans have four primary objectives:
(1) Catalogue existing community food programs and retail food options
(2) Prioritize community food needs and desired outcomes
(3) Identify opportunities
(4) Point to ways forward to improve neighbourhood food security

For more information about the project's methodology, resources and supporting data, please download the Food-Friendly Neighbourhoods Project Supporting Documentation.

For additional information, please contact Michael Friedman, Manager, Agency Relations, 416-635-7771 ext. 23 or michael [at] northyorkharvest [dot] com.