Province helps strengthen Indigenous food security, sovereignty

More than 100 Indigenous-led projects are underway in communities throughout B.C., helping to strengthen local food security and food sovereignty with another round of funding set to open.

“Working alongside Indigenous partners is crucial to growing and maintaining our province’s food systems and part of our government’s ongoing commitment to reconciliation,” said Harwinder Sandhu, parliamentary secretary for agriculture. “These Indigenous-led projects highlight how Indigenous knowledge supports increasing local food supply and food security, especially in rural and remote communities.”

In 2023, the New Relationship Trust (NRT) launched the $30-milllion Indigenous Food Security and Sovereignty Program and is supporting both on-reserve and off-reserve projects, such as revitalizing food harvesting and Indigenous agro-ecosystems, expanding production capacity, boosting local food processing and distribution, and growing commercial value-added enterprises.

On Vancouver Island, Jared “Qwustenuxun” Williams, a Salish educator and traditional-foods chef who previously managed the Elders Kitchen in Cowichan Tribes, is upgrading a smokehouse into a commercial-quality kitchen that blends ancient preservation methods with modern food-safety standards.