Food is the first and fundamental right

Grow, Nourish, Sustain. Together. Our actions are our future. Illustration of people in greenery.
Facebook
Twitter
Email

We believe it’s very important to underscore every World Food Day, October 16, because when you don’t have enough to eat, nothing else matters. 

Over 800 million people worldwide go to sleep hungry. That’s a terrible tragedy. And it’s just plain shameful that four million Canadians, including more than a million children, experience some level of food insecurity. That means, for example, that parents skip meals so their kids can eat, or buy cheaper foods that lack proper nutrition. 

The 2020 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the United Nations World Food Programme to underscore the impact of COVID-19 on fragile food supply chains. Many of us were gripped by fear of a food shortage when the pandemic hit, leading to panic-buying. It was a wakeup call that should motivate us as a province to take action to relieve food insecurity for others. 

In Ontario, the province should raise Ontario Works and ODSP rates. Supporting a liveable minimum wage would also go far to ensuring no Ontario child goes to bed hungry. 

We continue to support the front-line workers who do their utmost to keep us fed, like those working in grocery stores and restaurants, as well as migrant farm workers. They deserve every Ontarian’s support in their struggle to be appropriately recognized and properly compensated. 

On World Food Day 2020, we encourage members to give special thanks for the abundant, nourishing food on their tables – and to do something to ensure every person on earth enjoys this same fundamental right. 

In solidarity, 

Warren (Smokey) Thomas, President
Eduardo (Eddy) Almeida, First Vice-President/Treasurer