The plant-based food industry in Canada is worth nearly $1 billion, with an expected growth of eight per cent per year.

Opinion: Circling back to meat

As I walk by a storefront that once housed the city’s largest ‘plant-based butcher,’ the irony hits me. The new sign announces that this will soon open again — as a beef burger cafe. It brings to light the complexity of understanding Canadian consumers and their varying wants and needs. Protein in all sources is […] Read more

Photo: Thinkstock

Canadian food inflation to slow through 2024, report says

More certainty has brought an uptick in grocer promotions, but consumers are struggling

Canadian food prices are expected to rise between 2.5 and 4.5 per cent in 2024, according to a new report. “It is probable that Canadians will continue to experience the strain of food inflation compounded by increasing costs of housing, energy and various other expenditures,” according to Canada’s Food Price Report 2024.

To minimize the impact of alternative proteins, the livestock sector should invest in research that addresses consumer concerns: ensuring and documenting the good health reasons to eat animal products, ways to lower the environmental impact of livestock production, and production methods to improve animal welfare.

Opinion: Alternative proteins’ impact on the livestock sector

Growth in plant-based proteins has stalled, but effect of cellular production unknown

The future has arrived for alternative proteins. Consumers now have many plant-based options in addition to livestock products such as meat, milk and eggs, and the expectation of cellularly produced items in the near future. Plant-based options are far from new. There is a fascinating short CBC video from the 1970s on YouTube about pea […] Read more

A majority of Canadians report greater concern about misinformation in food marketing.

Honesty key in building public trust through food marketing

Consumers increasingly value transparency over perfection

Glacier FarmMedia – Canadian consumers have a high level of mistrust when it comes to food labels and marketing. That was a key takeaway in a recent report from the Canadian Centre for Food Integrity, which showed that 62 per cent of Canadians have concerns about misleading food labels and marketing. Instead of viewing this […] Read more


A customer pushes a shopping cart past organic products at the Bio fruits and vegetables section in a supermarket in Gattierese, France.

EU organic output out of step with consumption

European farmers say they are encouraged to produce organically amid waning consumer interest

Organic consumption is falling in Europe even as governments mandate more production using that farming system. The European Commission is not paying attention to what people want, said Lode Ceyssens, president of the Belgian Farmers Union in Flanders. Why it matters: The EU’s Farm to Fork strategy emphasizes sustainable agriculture production, and organic production is […] Read more

Rashmi Prakash is the founder of Aruna Revolution. The company won the $45,000 Green Pursuit award for its development of menstrual products from compostable fibres.

Turning food and farm byproducts into compostable fibres

Company is using the fibres to create more sustainable menstrual products

A Canadian start-up that makes compostable fibres out of farm and food byproducts has won The Green Pursuit, a national sustainability and innovation challenge hosted by Dairy Farmers of Canada and Bioenterprise Canada. Why it matters: The global menstrual product market, estimated to be a $67.8 billion industry, is an opportunity to provide women with […] Read more

VIDEO: Ontario company offers award-winning Clēan

VIDEO: Ontario company offers award-winning Clēan

Winning an award for environmental sustainability has to make for a nice feel-good moment when showcasing new technologies, and this was exactly what Clēan Works was awarded at Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show this past summer. The Ontario-based company has designed the Clēan Flow System, a process that kills more than 99 per cent of pathogens […] Read more


Inside a Growcer modular farm unit.

Hydroponic farming company going strong in 2023

Growcer’s modular farms generate appeal across Canada

The cost of food has always been a concern in northern communities, but one Ontario-based company has developed a solution for year-round food access through modular farms. Ottawa company Growcer inc. makes modular farms out of 40-foot structures that can sustain harsh conditions. Its farms use hydroponics, a technique that uses nutrient-rich water rather than […] Read more

File photo of cattle on pasture northeast of Calgary. (James_Gabbert/iStock/Getty Images)

Report aims to show animal agriculture’s interconnections

CAPI hopes to broaden policymakers' perspective

A new report for the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute seeks to educate policymakers about the impact of animal agriculture on economic, social and environmental levels. The report, titled Forces Impacting Animal Agriculture In Canada: A Synthesis, delves into the issues surrounding cattle, dairy and poultry production in the country and how it is interconnected within […] Read more