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FOOD ASSET MAPPING IN TORONTO AND GREATER GOLDEN HORSESHOE REGION1 LAUREN BAKER

216 ISOCARP FOOD ASSET MAPPING IN TORONTO AND GREATER GOLDEN HORSESHOE REGION

» The purpose of the mapping project was to provide a baseline for planners and policy mak- ers to: 1. understand, promote and strengthen the regional food system, 2. provide information to enable analysis to inform decision making; and, 3. plan for resilience in the face of climate variability and socio, economic, and political vulnerability. «

Figure 1: The bounty of the Greenbelt harvest season. Photo credit: Joan Brady

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The City of Toronto is the largest City in Canada the third largest food processing and manufac- with a population of 2.6 million people (2011). turing cluster in North America, and the clus- The City is known as one of the most multicul- ter uses over 60% of the agricultural products tural cities in the world, with over 140 languages grown in Ontario3. Agriculture and the broader spoken. Immigrants account for 46% of Toron- food system contribute $11 billion and 38,000 to’s population, and one third of newcomers to jobs to the provincial economy, generating $1.7 Canada settle in the city2. Needless to say, diets billion in tax revenue. are extremely diverse. This represents an oppor- In 2005 a Greenbelt was created to contain tunity for the food and agriculture sector in On- urban growth and protect the natural and cul- tario, one that many organizations are seizing. tural heritage of the region. The Greenbelt pro- The region surrounding the City of Toronto, tects 7% of Ontario’s farmland, approximately known as the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH), 856,424 acres and 5501 farms4, mostly outside is made up of 21 upper and single tier munici- of urban communities clustered in the Golden palities. This region is Canada’s fastest growing, Horseshoe and around the City of Toronto. with a population of 8.7 million in 2011 which is In Canada, the agricultural policy framework projected to grow to 13.5 million by 2041. The is established by the federal government. Land region is plagued by traffic congestion, inad- use policy is under the jurisdiction of the prov- equate infrastructure, loss of agricultural land ince (Ontario) and administered by municipal and natural spaces to urban development, and governments. This framework and the resulting storm water management challenges. Efforts to policies and programs directly shape agricultural densify the built environment and better plan production. While land use policy is directed and urban communities could lead to healthier, sus- defined by the province, the way those definitions tainable and resilient communities. are interpreted across municipalities can vary. In this same GGH region forty-two percent The regulation of food and agriculture in- of Ontario’s best quality farmland is located, volves over 19 ministries including Ontario representing half of the land area. The region Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, produces a mix of crops including grains and Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Min- oilseed, fruit and vegetables, floriculture, live- istry of Economic Development, Employment stock and other specialty crops. Two provincially and Infrastructure, Ministry of Health and Long- designated specialty crop areas define the re- Term Care, and the Ministry of Environment and gion: the Niagara Peninsula known for tender Climate Change. The provincial land use policy fruit production and the Holland Marsh known statement has recently been revised to accom- for vegetable production. The GGH is known as modate new forms of agriculture, in particu-

Figure 2: Tomatoes grown in the Holland Marsh, a vege- table specialty crop region. Photo credit: Lauren Baker

218 ISOCARP FOOD ASSET MAPPING IN TORONTO AND GREATER GOLDEN HORSESHOE REGION lar to support on-farm, value-added activities. WHAT ARE FOOD ASSETS? However, farmers state that the current provin- Food asset planning is an emerging field. Food cial land use policy framework supports urban assets relate to the growing interest in food en- development over farmland preservation, inhib- vironments emerging from both the planning iting the viability of the agricultural sector5. and public health literature, as well as the lit- Little is known about the historic changes and erature on strengthening regional value chain shifts in food assets over time in the City of To- connections. For example, the American Plan- ronto and Greater Golden Horseshoe Region. ning Association’s Policy Guide on Commu- The flow and diversity of the population impacts nity and Regional Food Planning, published farming, food processing and manufacturing, in 2007, recommends that planners “provide the food retail environment, neighborhood mar- data and mapping support to community and kets and green grocers, but none of this is well regional food assessments, including the inci- documented. What is known is that agricultural dence of food insecurity and location of diverse production has shifted over time to access new food assets” and develop policies and plans to markets and market opportunities. Overall the enhance these assets8. number of farms has diminished greatly over Food assets are a key component of inte- the past 50 years, as have the number of food grated food planning and have not been fully processing outlets6. Food manufacturing and considered in the planning practice or litera- processing has been centralized and consoli- ture. Food assets include the local food infra- dated in the Greater Toronto Area and over half structure that ensure food secure communities of the Ontario food processing facilities are lo- and regions - farms, processing and distribution cated in the Golden Horseshoe. capacity, food enterprises, markets, retailers, Food insecurity is a persistent problem in the community gardens, urban farms, community Golden Horseshoe, with over 12% of the popula- gardens, community kitchens, student nutri- tion in Toronto reporting insecure access to ad- tion programs, emergency food distribution, equate food due to financial constraints.7 Over and community food organizations or centers. time, Toronto’s food advocates have actively The concept of food assets can be expanded built a network of community food programs to to include waste facilities, agricultural inputs, address food insecurity, enhance food security urban orchards, and non-physical assets such and increase access to healthy food. These in- as funding, investment opportunities, services, itiatives directly connect to the City of Toronto’s political support, etc. diverse communities and priorities related to health, poverty reduction, and social equity.

Figure 3: Evergreen Brick Works Farmer’s Market in Toronto. Photo credit: Lauren Baker

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FOOD ASSET MAPPING BY THE Figure 4: A produce auction managed GOLDEN HORSESHOE FOOD AND by Mennonites in Elmira, Ontario. Photo credit: Lauren Baker FARMING ALLIANCE The development of the Golden Horseshoe age Park, Ontario Federation of Agriculture, Eco- Food and Farming Action Plan 2021 created a source, Food and Beverage Ontario, the Regions framework for action to keep food and farming of Durham, Halton, Niagara, Peel, York and the a strong economic driver in this highly urbanized Cities of Hamilton and Toronto, as well as local area. The Plan identifies pathways for a more representatives from the food and farming value integrated and coordinated approach to food chain. This group acts as a regional governance and farming viability in the area to ensure that and coordination body, supporting initiatives the Golden Horseshoe retains, enhances and that enhance agriculture and the economic, so- expands its role as a leading food and farming cial, and cultural viability of the food and agricul- cluster (Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming ture sector. The first phase to asset mapping was Alliance, 2012). The next event was the estab- undertaken by the Alliance in 2013. lishment of the Golden Horseshoe Food and The purpose of the mapping project was to Farming Alliance. The Alliance was established provide a baseline for planners and policy mak- in 2013, after the development of the Action ers to: 1. understand, promote and strengthen Plan. The Alliance is comprised of the Niagara the regional food system, 2. provide information Agricultural Policy and Action Committee, the to enable analysis to inform decision making; Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, the and, 3. plan for resilience in the face of climate Friends of the Greenbelt, the Ontario Ministry variability and socio, economic, and political of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, Vineland vulnerability. Mapping also provides a method Research and Innovation Centre, Holland Marsh to assess and track local food assets as a way to Growers’ Association, Durham College, Holland strengthen the “food cluster” and connect farm- Marsh Growers, Niagara College, Country Herit- ers with processors, manufacturers, and new

220 ISOCARP Figure 5: Types of agri-food assests

markets. Planners hope to use the information opportunities/challenges of the food and to understand how land use policy and econom- farming sector ic development programs can best support the ·· To move from anecdotal to quantifiable agri-food sector and the implementation of the understanding of the sector Food and Farming Action Plan 2021. ·· To identify where government can best sup- The Alliance asset mapping project was guid- port industry and policy development ed by a steering committee of regional planners ·· For reporting and economic development officers. In addi- ·· To increase viability of agriculture in the tion, a workshop about sharing the results of greenbelt the asset mapping project attracted economic ·· To work collaboratively across the region and development officers, policy/landuse/GIS/en- across the food system vs municipality by vironmental planners, public health staff, staff municipality from the Board of Trade and staff from the On- ·· For regional food system assessment tario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural ·· To define a new economic cluster for the region Affairs (OMAFRA). Workshop participants iden- ·· To compare municipality by municipality tified the following ways they will use the asset ·· To collaborate, find synergies and enhance mapping data: communication ·· To understand value added opportunities and ·· To apply the methodology to other sectors link up value chains ·· To enhance employment survey data ·· As an investment tool ·· For analysis and planning ·· To increase efficiencies in the food system ·· To protect agricultural land, protect livelihoods ·· To understand strengths/weaknesses and ·· To compare data over time

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Two phases of asset mapping have been FOOD ASSET MAPPING BY THE undertaken by the Alliance. The first involved TORONTO FOOD POLICY COUNCIL the seven regional and municipal governments The second approach to asset mapping, under- engaged in the Alliance. In the second phase, taken by the Toronto Food Policy Council, com- the project was expanded to include the Greater plements the work of the Golden Horseshoe Golden Horseshoe, 14 additional regional gov- Food and Farming Alliance by adding in com- ernments and Eastern Ontario. Future plans munity food assets. include expanding to the province as a whole. The Toronto Food Policy Council (TFPC) was Funding for the Asset Mapping project was established by the Toronto City Council, in 1991, provided by the Alliance partners, Agricultural to bring a food systems approach to the growing Adaptation Council and Ontario Ministry of Agri- problem of rising hunger and food insecurity. culture, Food and Rural Affairs. The TFPC’s mandate is to: advise and support Across the Greater Golden Horseshoe, over the City of Toronto and Toronto Public Health 50,000 asset points have been mapped using in the development of inclusive and compre- the following approach. Assets were identified hensive food security policies and programs; through municipal data (44%), open source advocate for innovative community food sec- data (32%) and third party data (24%).9 For urity programs; foster dialogue with Toronto example, municipalities provided data col- Public Health, community groups, social agen- lected by economic development for business cies, educational institutions and businesses; retention and expansion analysis. Many muni- and, act as the community reference group for cipalities had previously collected data to map the Toronto Food Strategy. TFPC members in- farm gate sales. OMAFRA provided access to clude three elected officials, three farmers from farm business names, type of farming con- the surrounding rural communities, two youth ducted, and locations. Each asset was assigned delegates from the Toronto Youth Food Policy a North American Industry Classification Sys- Council, and twenty two citizen stakeholders tem (NAICS) code, a data inventory was cre- representing diverse food system perspectives ated, consensus was reached by the steering and sectors. Over the past twenty five years, the committee on common data attributes, a data TFPC has made significant contributions to the model was developed to reflect the temporal, Toronto Food Strategy, Toronto Environmental spatial, and business relationship of the agri- Plan, Toronto Food Charter, the Official Plan, food asset records and to identify relationships the Toronto Food and Hunger Action Plan, and between the data elements and attributes. The facilitated City engagement with the Greater To- data was imported into a central database, and ronto Area Agricultural Action Committee and visualization and web presentation tools were Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance. developed. The tool has been designed for the The TFPC food asset mapping initiative use of the partnering municipalities and will not is called “Food by Ward: Food Assets and be available for public use. Opportunities Ward by Ward”. Data began to Challenges included sharing data across be complied several years ago, and includes municipalities, building confidence in the neighborhood food assets such as community data, and maintaining data integrity. Moving gardens, urban agriculture initiatives, farmers’ forward the group will update data, maintain markets, healthier food retail, emergency food data integrity, review assets and confirm loca- distribution, community kitchens and other tions, update NAICS agri-food inventory, create community food organizations/programs. A guidelines on NAICS classification, add GPS central database was formed, data was mapped, locations, and enable new web functions. A ward resources were developed for Toronto’s 44 longer term goal includes automation and syn- wards, the resources were verified by community chronization of employment data and business food advocates, and launched at City Hall. Fund- retention and expansion surveys across the re- ing has been provided by Toronto Public Health. gion for ease of updating. The asset mapping project is guided by a working group of community food advocates

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Figure 6: The launch of the Food by Ward asset map- ping resources at City Hall in Toronto. Photo credit: Lauren Baker and professionals. A workshop to share the re- ·· To find land for urban agriculture; sults of the asset mapping project attracted City ·· To understand the link between poverty, ac- staff, public health professionals, academics, cess to public transportation and food access; planners, community gardeners, people work- ·· To find space for community food programs; ing in the emergency food distribution sector, ·· To communicate how food is an important urban farmers, farmers market coordinators, part of the city’s social, cultural and economic community volunteers, funders, and social ser- infrastructure; and, vice agency professionals. Workshop partici- ·· To engage planners and other city staff. pants identified the following ways they will use the asset mapping data: Across the City of Toronto, 3500 asset points ·· To understand how to improve the neighbor- have been mapped using the following ap- hood food environment; proach10. Assets were identified through muni- ·· To advocate for better services; cipal data (all of Toronto’s data is open source), ·· To build relationships with elected officials; and third party data. For example, the City of ·· To understand and rectify the uneven distribu- Toronto provided data collected by the Parks, tion of food assets across the city; Forestry and Recreation Division on community

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and allotment gardens. Toronto Public Health Figure 7: St. John’s Bakery, a social provided data on healthier food retail collected enterprise in the City of Toronto. Photo credit: Lauren Baker by food inspectors, and student nutrition pro- grams. The Greenbelt Foundation supports a lenges included building confidence in the data Greenbelt Farmer’s Market network that provid- and maintaining data integrity. Moving forward ed data on farmer’s markets. the TFPC and City will work together to main- Assets were categorized according to access tain data integrity, review and add assets, and to healthy food, emergency food assistance pro- develop web-based maps and functions. grams, community food programs and food fes- tivals and events. Assets were mapped in these DISCUSSION categories with definitions provided as well Food asset mapping can provide an important as a narrative about how these assets support baseline of information to understand how the a healthy, equitable and sustainable city. The agriculture and food sector is changing over maps were verified by community food advo- time. It is both a quantitative and qualitative indi- cates and the data was updated. cation of what is important to those making deci- This approach to mapping reveals the inequit- sions and about what to include (or not) as a food able distribution of assets across the city, con- asset. The asset mapping, however, is only a first necting food access to broader issues of health step – points on a map or entries into a database. and social inequality. Community food advo- The real work comes in putting the tools to use to cates and municipal staff involved are using strengthen food systems connections, networks the information to understand how the neigh- of advocates and stakeholders, value chains, borhood food environment can contribute to a policy and governance. Over the years the tool healthy, equitable and sustainable city. The data will change and evolve and could be evaluated collected will now be integrated into the City of for its contribution to food system sustainability Toronto’s data set and regularly updated. Chal- and equity. With both asset mapping initiatives, it

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is too early to see how they will be used by advo- Figure 8: A rooftop commu- cates, professionals and policy makers. nity garden in Toronto. Photo credit: Lauren Baker Already, however, the maps are a catalyst for discussion and organizing. For example, the to realize their priorities. These networks link Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance social service organization staff, city staff and municipalities are considering to extend their community advocates, building community re- mandate beyond their political boundaries silience and political agency. to make food system connections. In another example, one economic development officer NEXT STEPS suggested he would use the mapping tool to The food asset mapping initiatives will continue support local businesses to make value chain to evolve. A few opportunities for next steps are links to local suppliers. Another noted that on the horizon. Toronto and region was select- understanding assets could leverage invest- ed, in 2015, to participate in the CityFoodTools ment in a sector. Environmental policy planners initiative led by the RUAF Foundation, the Food were interested in seeing how agricultural land- and Agriculture Organization of the United Na- scapes could link to natural heritage areas to tions, and the Wilfred Laurier Centre for Sus- improve storm water management. tainable Food Systems. Toronto is one of seven In Toronto, the asset mapping resource mo- cities globally that will be undertaking a food bilized “food champions” to identify priorities system assessment. that were embedded into the City’s poverty re- The asset mapping work will be invaluable for duction strategy. The food asset mapping cata- this project. One identified possibility, to more lyzed a discussion about neighborhood or ward deeply understand the regional food system, is food priorities that will be communicated to to undertake food flow analyses for specific agri- city councillors and decision makers. A longer cultural products. Here the strength of the asset term plan is to strengthen local food networks mapping work is revealed as one can imagine

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Acknowledgements identifying, for example, apple farms, their cur- Thank you to the Toronto Food Policy Council, Gold- rent regional (and global) markets as well as ex- en Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance, Toronto ploring future market linkages. Public Health Food Strategy, City of Toronto, 4DM, The food system assessment emphasiz- Synthesis Agri-food Network for their contributions es food security and equity, and an analysis of to this chapter and the food asset mapping initiatives. neighborhood food assets will be key to under- standing issues related to access, quality, and community engagement. It is possible that the ENDNOTES methods and process used in the food asset 1 For further information and full reports on the two asset mapping ini- mapping initiatives, as well as the challenges, tiatives described above, visit: www.foodandfarming.ca and www.tfpc.to could be shared between global city regions. 2 Statistics Canada, 2016

For more details on this initiative, visit 3 Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance 2014 http://www.ruaf.org/projects/developing-tools- 4 Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation, 2014 mapping-and-assessing-sustainable-city-region-food- systems-cityfoodtools 5 Ontario Federation of Agriculture and Environmental Defense 2015

6 Carter-Whitney and Miller 2010

7 Tarasuk, V, Mitchell, A, Dachner, N. (2016). Household food insecurity in Canada, 2014. Toronto: Research to identify policy options to reduce food insecurity (PROOF). Retrieved from http://proof.utoronto.ca

8 2007, 15

9 Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance, 2015

10 Toronto Food Policy Council, 2016

References

American Planning Association. 2007. Policy Guide on Community and Regional Food Planning.

Carter-Whitney, M. and S. Miller. 2010. Nurturing Fruit and Vegetable Processing in Ontario. Toronto: Metcalf Foundation.

City of Toronto. 2012. History of food in the city exhibit at St. Lawrence Market. Toronto: City of Toronto.

City of Toronto. 2016. Toronto Facts: Diversity. Accessed online February 15, 2016 from http://www1.toronto.ca/wps/portal/ contentonly?vgnextoid=dbe867b42d853410VgnVCM10000071d60f89RCRD.

Fridman, J, L. Baker and B. Whyte. 2014. “A Terroir of Institutions in Toronto.” In A. Sandburg et al (eds). Urban Explorations: Environmental Histories of the Toronto Region. Toronto: Wilson Institute for Canadian History.

Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation. 2014. Agriculture by the Numbers: Understanding the Greenbelt’s Unique Advantages. Toronto: Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation.

Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance. 2012. Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Action Plan 2021. Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance.

Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance. 2014. Agricultural Profiles. Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance.

Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance. 2015. Analysis Of Food And Farming Assets In The Golden Horseshoe. Golden Horseshoe Food and Farming Alliance.

Ontario Federation of Agriculture and Environmental Defence. 2015. Farmland at risk: Why land-use planning needs improvements for a healthy agricultural future in the Greater Golden Horseshoe. Toronto: Ontario Federation of Agriculture and Environmental Defence.

Statistics Canada 2016. Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity in Canada. Accessed online February 15, 2016 from https://www12.statcan. gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/as-sa/99-010-x/99-010-x2011001-eng.cfm.

Toronto Food Policy Council. 2016. Food by Ward: Food Assets and Opportunities Ward by Ward. Toronto: Toronto Food Policy Council

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Figure 9: An apple orchard in the Golden Horseshoe tender fruit specialty crop region. Photo credit: Laura Berman, GreenFuse Photos

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