FoodARC (Research Inspiring Change)

A research centre located at MSVU which houses the Nova Scotia Participatory Food Costing Project.

We perform research into the causes of Food Insecurity as well as how much it costs to eat a nutritious diet. FoodARC Vision:
With community, university and government partners, we are embarking on research and action that supports the development of healthy, vibrant Nova Scotia communities that are self-reliant and socially just. We are working toward a future where everyone has access to enough

affordable, healthy, and culturally appropriate food, that is produced in socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable ways. We are “research inspiring change.”

Our History:
Over a decade ago, the persistence and injustice of food insecurity in Nova Scotia catalyzed a partnership among the Nova Scotia Nutrition Council, the Atlantic Health Promotion Research Centre, and Nova Scotia Family Resource Centres and Projects, resulting in the Nova Scotia Participatory Food Costing Projects. In 2006, the collaboration expanded to launch the Nova Scotia Food Security Network and additional participatory research projects and activities. One year later, Dr. Patty Williams became a Tier II Canada Research Chair in food security and policy change and founded the Participatory Action Research and Training Centre on Food Security (PARTC-FS) at Mount Saint Vincent. The work continued to advance in 2010 with the beginning of a 5-year Community-University Research Alliance (CURA): Activating Change Together for Community Food Security. FoodARC (Food Action Research Centre) emerged in 2012 to replace the Participatory Action Research and Training Centre on Food Security as the latest step in the evolution of many deep, cross-sectoral relationships and significant research activities working to better understand and build food security in Nova Scotia and beyond. FoodARC wants to continue to work with local, regional, national and international partners to strengthen relationships, share resources and knowledge, and work together across disciplines as a network of activists and researchers to create social justice, healthy, and vibrant communities.

03/26/2021

There is so much that goes into what we eat including traditional foodways. We are happy to see the acknowledgement of this in the Nutrition Month 2021 campaign.

Check out this paper to read more on how assessments and tools created for retail food environments should involve the community and their foodways.

Skinner K., Burnett K., Williams P., Martin D., Stothart, C., Leblanc J., Veeraraghavan G., Sheedy A. (2016). Challenges in assessing food environments in northern and remote communities in Canada. Can J Public Health, 107(1): eS60-eS63. doi: 10.17269/CJPH.107.5324. Link:https://link.springer.com/article/10.17269/CJPH.107.5324

Measuring low income and Canada's Official Poverty Line

10/31/2018

Until January 31st, Canadians can participate in this survey to help determine how poverty is measured in Canada.

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.statcan.gc.ca%2Feng%2Fconsultation%2Fmbm&h=AT1Dp29mqby2Nu7ntbOGqS_-6Gz45ptZQpILxPkaKY28BuO3arEO1NuQXhVc8cGctfSQapkfNsJXvwP8w1WgzgecZQioIbkKvV2B2AyiVf90ZGvC16Bq3OrKBfXMUm6v&s=1

Measuring low income and Canada's Official Poverty Line Consultation objectives From October 15, 2018 to January 31, 2019, Statistics Canada is conducting a consultation to gather input from Canadians to help validate how we are measuring poverty. Recently, the Government of Canada announced that the Market......

09/17/2018

Orchestrating a Better Food System: Hearing from Canadians on Food Policy There is finally some noise about food policy as the government publishes its What We Heard report from its 2017 public consultations. Find out what we thought!

09/17/2018

Food workers key to delivering public vision of National Food Policy - UFCW Canada - Canada’s Private Sector Union Canada’s food workers are glad to see that many of our hopes for the National Food Policy are shared by the Canadian public, including some of our fellow key stakeholders, who, with us, combine their efforts and resources to feed Canada and many other countries around the globe.

09/06/2018

September is hunger action month! Read more here about ways you can take action and help tackle hunger in your community.

Hunger Action Month September is Hunger Action Month, a national campaign organized by Food Banks Canada to raise awareness and encourage Canadians to take action in four key ways: Educate, advocate, volunteer, and donate.

Food action and understanding: The roots of household food insecurity and ways to grow community food security (presentation)

08/22/2018

Check out Food action and understanding: The roots of household food insecurity and ways to grow community food security - a presentation prepared by FoodARC in collaboration with Ecology Action Centre.

You can download this presentation here:

Food action and understanding: The roots of household food insecurity and ways to grow community food security (presentation) The Food Action Research Centre, or FoodARC, is a research centre at Mount Saint Vincent University committed to research and action to build food security in Nova Scotia and beyond.

MSVU - Mount student, faculty attend inaugural Summer Institute of the Atlantic Indigenous Mentorship Network

08/21/2018

Congratulations to our friends at Atlantic Indigenous Mentorship Network for a successful first Summer Institute! You can find more information here: http://www.msvu.ca/en/home/aboutus/news/SummerInstitute2018.aspx

MSVU - Mount student, faculty attend inaugural Summer Institute of the Atlantic Indigenous Mentorship Network

08/20/2018

Here is a glance at what's happening at FoodARC - our August 2018 Newsletter: http://ow.ly/6EkK30ltwiz
Please, feel free to email [email protected] if you have any questions or would like to subscribe to our mailing list.
Thank you and have a great week!

Photos from FoodARC (Research Inspiring Change)'s post

08/17/2018

Do you know that there is a link between food insecurity and mental health? Check out this Research Snapshot by EENet - Evidence Exchange Network to know more about it!

08/16/2018

Notification of Thesis Defence: Nadia Pabani will present "Bringing the Public into Public Nutrition: How engagement with community-based participatory action research has informed Public Health Nutritionists’ practice in Nova Scotia" on August 21st, 2018 at 1:00 PM at FoodARC.