Transcript Funding Organization: Canadian Institutes of Health

Evaluating the Northern
Healthy Food Initiative
What is the impact on food security
in Aboriginal communities in
Northern Manitoba?
Shirley Thompson, University of Manitoba,
NHFI Evaluation Funded by: Institutes of Nutrition,
Metabolism and Diabetes, Population & Public Health and
Aboriginal People’s Health
Objectives
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Listen to Aboriginal communities issues about basic
needs/environmental service deliveries/solutions.
Hold workshops to provide training and brainstorm
about solutions guided by steering committee of
Aboriginal Organizations.
Connect environmental services to community
economic development
Assist where possible with Northern Aboriginal
communities to find funding for their community to
start a community garden, developing a waste
management plan, community plan, community
development, etc.
Community Food Security
“ a condition in which all residents obtain a safe,
culturally appropriate, nutritionally sound diet
through an economically and environmentally
sustainable food system that promotes
community self-reliance and social justice!”
Hamm & Bellows
Food security issues
High costs
 Decline of hunting and fishing
 Trading of traditional foods limited by Indian
Act
 Freight costs
 High diabetes and obesity rates
 Treaty Land Rights
 Northern Store monopoly
(Northern Food Prices Steering Committee,
2003)

TO BE REPLACED BY
UPDATED SLIDE
Projected Number of People with Diabetes MB First Nations, 19962016
14,000
13,468
1996
2016
Number of Diabetes Cases
12,000
10,000
7,656
8,000
4,732
6,000
4,000
2,590
2,000
0
Males
Females
Source: http://www.gov.mb.ca/health/publichealth/ epiunit/docs/storm.pdf
Environmental Service Delivery
 “Provide
people with proper
housing, water, sewage, jobs and
the means to provide adequate
food and health statistics would
improve” (Archibald and Grey,
2000).
The Northern Healthy Foods
Initiative (NHFI)

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Community-based intervention funded by the
provincial government of Manitoba, which is
designed to increase access to affordable
nutritious food in Northern Manitoba communities.
NHFI team includes:
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Aboriginal and Northern Affairs
Manitoba Agriculture, Food and Rural Initiatives
(MAFRI)
Healthy Living
Manitoba Conservation
Healthy Child Manitoba
Making it work: the Community-based
organizations (CBOs):
1) Bayline Regional Roundtable;
2) Northern Association of Community Councils
(NACC);
3)Four Arrows Regional Health Authority Inc.; and
4)Frontier School Division.
 CBOs build capacity in local production of food
for local consumption, choose nutritional foods,
implement strategies to lower the cost for healthy
foods, leverage funding for projects, and create
food based economic development opportunities.
Solutions that are working: Northern
Healthy Food Initiative Pilot project in
17+ communities?
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1) community gardens (273);
2) greenhouse pilot projects (3);
3) increasing access to nutritious commercial food
(direct buy, retail, federal food mail subsidy, coops, etc).
4) school nutrition;
5) increasing access to country foods (hunting,
fishing, berries, production, etc).
6) food preservation (freezer, cold cellars, canning)
++Other (poultry production, etc)
Northern Healthy Food Initiative
SHERRIDON
•
Sherridon – 10 gardeners
•
Vegetable seeds
distributed in early June.
– Strawberries &
raspberries introduced.
– Seed potato donation
from Peak of the
Market distributed.
•
Planting was delayed due
to a fire.
•
Plans for next year include
school gardening projects.
LEAF RAPIDS/GRANVILLE
•
Leaf Rapids/Granville - 10
gardeners
•
School gardening was very
successful last year
•
Plans will be made to do
more gardening with the
school this year.
MOOSE LAKE
•
Moose Lake - 5 gardeners.
•
Vegetable seeds distributed
in early June.
– Strawberries &
raspberries introduced.
– Seed potato donation
from peak of the market
distributed.
•
Plans for next year include
further work on the
community garden.
BERENS RIVER
•
Berens River – 25 gardeners
•
Vegetable seeds distributed
in early June.
- Strawberries & raspberries
introduced.
- Seed potato donation from
Peak of the Market
distributed.
•
Father Rheal has begun
raising goats and laying
chickens this
year.
- Goats are being used for
fertilizer and Milk.
- Eggs are shared among
community members
PHOTO GALLERY
TOMATOES
CROSSING BAY/MOOSE LAKE
WILD BERRIES
BERENS RIVER
COMMUNITY MEMBERS
LEAF RAPIDS
BROCCOLI
LEAF RAPIDS
GOATS
BERENS RIVER
PHOTO GALLERY
GARDEN PREPARATION
BERENS RIVER
VEGETABLES
CROSSING BAY/MOOSE LAKE
GREEN HOUSE
LEAF RAPIDS
GARDEN
CROSSING BAY/MOOSE LAKE
GARDEN PREPARATION
BERENS RIVER
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Standard community garden plot
25x50ft…
POULTRY PRODUCTION
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Oxford House (layers, meat, turkeys)
Nelson House (layers and meat)
Pikwitonei & Cormorant (meat)
GREENHOUSES
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Covering New Ground Project (Thicket Portage,
Pikwitonei, Oxford House, Wabowden)
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Extend growing season
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Introduce greenhouse concept
TO THIS….
FROM THIS….
Standard size composter for community
garden plot composting enriches poor
soil and reduces waste.
Testing soil
SHARING OUR LEARNING
Start with the youth….
Learn By Observing…
Evaluation measures at 3
different levels
Government infrastructure & service
delivery model
2) Implementation by Communitybased organizations (CBOs).
3) Community, household and
individual outcomes.
1)
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Have food security outcomes improved?
What are your communities needs and assets?
1) Government infrastructure and
service delivery model
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1)
2)
3)
A document review, interviews and
strategic analysis workshop to track the
progress of original aims and
expectations of NHFI through policy
and operational decisions with
government policy-makers
government program managers
NHFI extension workers
What is a community food
assessment (CFA)?
A collaborative and participatory process that systematically
examines a broad range of community food issues and
assets, so as to inform change actions to make the
community more food secure. A CFA looks at resources as
well as needs.
Other elements:
 participatory
 focuses on a defined place
 involves diverse and key participants
 emphasizes community participation and empowerment
 examines a broad range of community food security issues
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Community Food Assessment
Steps
Organize
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Identify a group of key stakeholders
Organize initial meeting(s)
Determine the group’s interest in conducting an
assessment
Identify and recruit other participants, representing
diverse interests and skills
Plan
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Determine assessment purposes and goals
Develop an overall plan and decision-making proces
Recruit and train staff and volunteers as needed
Create evaluation plan
Research
 Determine appropriate research methods
 Collect and analyze data from existing and original
sources
 Summarize assessment findings
Report
 Develop recommendations and action plan
 Develop communications strategy
 Clearly frame and articulate the message
 Disseminate findings to residents and policymakers
through meetings and materials
 Develop specific policy recommendations
Potential Benefits of Community
Food Assessments
Involve and Empower the Community
 Engage residents in collaborative learning about food-related
needs and resources
 Build capacity for effective, collaborative action to improve the
community
Improve Existing Programs and Create New Ones
 Identify gaps and potential for improvement
 Increase community awareness and utilization of existing
resources
Develop Advocacy Skills and Change Public Policy
 Build residents’ skills to organize and advocate for policy change
 Educate media and policymakers with compelling, researchbased results
Improve Access to Healthy Foods
 Increase availability of local, fresh produce in stores, schools, etc
 Improve the selection of products available in neighborhood
stores