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Collaborating
for the social-ecological transition

Preparatory activities

MARCH TO OCTOBER, 2022

Lead-up events

  • Summit on the institutional supply chains of local food in the Arthabaska MRC, organized by CISA in Victoriaville.
  • Rendez-vous de l’alimentation scolaire au Québec (Quebec school food summit), organized by the Chantier pour un programme d’alimentation scolaire universel au Québec.
  • Food stamp programs : A day of reflexion, organised by various partners including Association des marchés publics du Québec, Vital and Conseil SAM à Montréal.

Tour of the regions

  • Co-creation of a common vision on the conditions for success and transferability of territorial food systems through in-person and virtual workshops in each region of Quebec.

Working Groups

  • On topics relating to financing, governance structures and the right to food.

Analysis and dissemination

  • Analysis of all the insights harvested and drafting of summary sheets.
Forum SAT 2022

15-16 NOVEMBER IN VICTORIAVILLE

A first large-scale gathering

  • Presented a first outline of a shared vision of territorial food systems and priority issues
  • Put forward innovative projects and their limits
  • Discussed conditions for success in building more resilient and sustainable food systems

See the event schedule and speakers list HERE (French pdf).

Read the event summary HERE.

Next steps

2023-2024

Action plan priorities

With the support of the advisory and coordination committees, the Forum SAT team is currently implementing initial steps of a 2023-2024 action plan centered around the three following priorities, which it will implement in coordination with its partners.

  • Priority 1: continued stakeholder mobilisation around territorially-grounded solutions
  • Priority 2: promotion of territorial food systems in the political sphere
  • Priority 3: securing the long-term future of the Forum SAT process

Fall 2023 special programming

Two online discussion panels are programmed this fall and will feature testimonials of project leaders from around the province. The topics covered in the webinars are the following:

  • 26 October : pooling food transports (rewatch here — in French only)
  • 17 November : mobilising municipal partners in territorial food projects (rewatch here) — In french only
Preparatory activities

MARCH TO OCTOBER, 2022

Lead-up events

  • Summit on the institutional supply chains of local food in the Arthabaska MRC, organized by CISA in Victoriaville.
  • Rendez-vous de l’alimentation scolaire au Québec (Quebec school food summit), organized by the Chantier pour un programme d’alimentation scolaire universel au Québec.
  • Food stamp programs : A day of reflexion, organised by various partners including Association des marchés publics du Québec, Vital and Conseil SAM à Montréal.

Tour of the regions

  • Co-creation of a common vision on the conditions for success and transferability of territorial food systems through in-person and virtual workshops in each region of Quebec.

Working Groups

  • On topics relating to financing, governance structures and the right to food.

Analysis and dissemination

  • Analysis of all the insights harvested and drafting of summary sheets.
Forum SAT 2022

15-16 NOVEMBER IN VICTORIAVILLE

A first large-scale gathering

  • Presented a first outline of a shared vision of territorial food systems and priority issues
  • Put forward innovative projects and their limits
  • Discussed conditions for success in building more resilient and sustainable food systems

See the event schedule and speakers list HERE (French pdf).

Read the event summary HERE.

Next steps

2023-2024

Action plan priorities

With the support of the advisory and coordination committees, the Forum SAT team is currently implementing initial steps of a 2023-2024 action plan centered around the three following priorities, which it will implement in coordination with its partners.

  • Priority 1: continued stakeholder mobilisation around territorially-grounded solutions
  • Priority 2: promotion of territorial food systems in the political sphere
  • Priority 3: securing the long-term future of the Forum SAT process

Fall 2023 special programming

Two online discussion panels are programmed this fall and will feature testimonials of project leaders from around the province. The topics covered in the webinars are the following:

  • 26 October : pooling food transports (rewatch here — in French only)
  • 17 November : mobilising municipal partners in territorial food projects (rewatch here) — In french only

A collective voice to strengthen
territorial food systems

Territorial food systems (TFS) have become indispensable collective players in the health and the socio-ecological transition of our communities.

We, the participants of the Forum SAT*, gathered in Victoriaville and online from all over Québec, are convinced of the importance of transforming our relationship to food on the model of the One Health approach, in which the health of populations is regarded as inextricable from that of the ecosystems in which they live.

We have a common understanding of the interconnected issues affecting food systems: food insecurity; unequal access to nutritious, traditional, and culturally appropriate foods; lifestyle-related chronic disease; marked rise in food prices; soil degradation; unaffordability of farmland; shortage of young farmers and farm labour; rising cost of inputs; competition from imported products; the precariousness of farm incomes, and the effects of climate change on subsistence activities, agriculture, fisheries, and biodiversity, among many other issues.

We recognize that it is essential to work in collaboration with all the partners who are striving to guarantee food autonomy, food security, and the right to food for our people. Governments, collective and private enterprises, teaching and research institutions, organizations, producers (i.e., farmers, fisherfolk, gatherers, and others) and citizens all have a role to play in implementing territorial food systems in Quebec.

TFS is a model based on and characterized by:

  • access to healthy food for all;
  • rootedness in the realities of territories and populations;
  • fair and transparent transactions;
  • ecosystem-regenerative farming, forestry, and fishing practices;
  • intersectoral and inclusive governance;
  • active participation of communities.

We call for the deployment of financial, political, and legal mechanisms, consistent and complementary with existing measures, to support the sustainable implementation of TFS throughout Quebec. We propose the following measures:

  • Develop a legal framework for TFS and recognize the right to food.
  • Implement programs guaranteeing access to fresh, healthy, local food in all communities, particularly in food deserts and remote regions (e.g., food stamps, universal school food program, mobile markets).
  • Pool food processing, storage, and transportation facilities, in particular through the creation of social economy-based logistical hubs.
  • Support food sovereignty and fight food insecurity for the First Nations and Inuit, who are facing distinct food realities, needs, and systems.
  • Support the food sovereignty initiatives of racialized communities, notably black communities.
  • Reinforce the protection of farmland and soil health, in particular through the creation of farmland trusts.
  • Allow access to land, forests, rivers, and the ocean for settlement of young farmers and for community subsistence.
  • Pursue the implementation of community-based food systems, in particular by promoting the development of multifaceted and multifunctional urban agriculture.
  • Reaffirm the value of farming as a profession in order to guarantee farmers a dignified standard of living.
  • Reduce food loss and waste in all components of TFS, in particular through the circular economy.
  • Reduce the ecological footprint of TFS and support businesses in adopting sustainable practices and in adapting to climate change.
  • Consolidate or develop inclusive, intersectoral consensus forums to provide for coordination among stakeholders, including individuals.
  • Guarantee stable funding that is complementary to existing funding sources, and limit accountability mechanisms to the essential.
  • Develop effective networks for discussion of promising solutions among regions facing similar issues (e.g., communities of practice).
  • Continue research on TFS to improve our understanding of the existing dynamics and to document their outcomes.

We offer our expertise, our networks, and our determination to local and national governments so that territorial food systems can become powerful vehicles for the socio-ecological transition of our communities.

The participants of the Forum SAT

* SAT for systèmes alimentaires territoriaux in French or territorial food systems in English

Looking Further Together

WHAT IS
A TERRITORIAL FOOD SYSTEM?

The Forum SAT’s approach aims to build a vision of territorial food systems that will be shared by actors and networks in favour of their deployment throughout Quebec. It is difficult to propose a single definition of territorial food systems, but some elements are essential to build a sustainable, inclusive and resilient food system:

 

A territorial approach

Food systems are anchored in their territory, which can be local (their community, their neighbourhood), supralocal (several municipalities, the MRC [Regional county municipality], several MRCs) or regional. Exchanges and connections are created between the different territorial scales. Actors from different agri-food sectors interact and break down sectoral silos. The territorial approach adopts a global perspective necessary for structural changes.

A systems approach

Food systems are complex; they involve a multitude of actors in the food chain: production, processing, distribution, consumption, waste management and transport. These actors need to be considered in their specific roles, but also through their connections with each other. In turn, these actors are embedded in a web of external actors that also have a structuring role in territorial food systems, such as municipalities, the food industry and public authorities. It is therefore necessary to combine the knowledge of the different actors and to establish good communication between them in order to create a network of collaboration at the territorial level.

See the definition of a food system proposed by REPSAQ from the Encyclopedia of Food and Health.

 

An approach based
on the social-ecological transition

In the face of the rapidity of climate change and the limits of the dominant agro-industrial system, the implementation of territorial food systems that combine societal responsibilities and sustainable development becomes essential to ensure greater local and regional food autonomy. Developed under different models depending on the region, territorial food systems share a common objective, that of contributing to increasing food autonomy and security for all in a perspective of social-ecological transition.

Watch the three videos (in French) on sustainable food systems, the ingredients for a food community, and the steps to set up a food community, produced by Vivre en Ville.

2023 EVENTS
Webinar: Pooling of food transports
26 October 2023 - 75 minutes

TO WATCH THE RECORDING, IT'S HERE


Webinar: Realities of mobilising municipal actors in food programs
17 November 2023 - 75 minutes

TO WATCH THE RECORDING, IT'S HERE


Solutions adapted to the territories

REGIONAL POSTERS
As part of the Forum SAT process, a tour of the regions was carried out from June to October 2022 and led our team to meet with actors in the 17 regions of Quebec. Whether in the form of workshops, in person or virtually, or by referring to documents produced during recent consultations with regional actors, we collected data on the needs, issues and success stories of Quebec’s food systems.
In collaboration with the regional actors, summaries of the TFSs in each region were developed in order to get an overview. From these summaries, posters have emerged which are presented at the 2022 Forum. These posters are a first draft and a snapshot in time, knowing that SATs are dynamic and in constant evolution. Throughout 2023 and into early 2024, a second round of summaries will be finalized and available online on our website.
OUR PARTNERS
REGAL+, Laurentides
First Nations and Inuit in Quebec and Labrador Food Security Committee
OUR FUNDING PARTNERS
CONTACT

1431 Fullum, Suite 105, Montréal, QC H2K 0B5
forumsat2022@gmail.com

PARTNER

The Forum SAT approach is financially supported by the Lucie and André Chagnon Foundation.

To follow the progress of our work, subscribe to our newsletter (in French only at the moment) HERE