Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) has announced the national expansion of The Business of Food (BOF), thanks to a $450,000 multi-year partnership from Bayer Crop Science Canada. This new partnership will also leverage matching funding from the recently announced Canadian Agriculture Partnership program through Agriculture and Agri-food Canada.
Developed by AgScape, the Ontario member to AITC-C, the Business of Food is a comprehensive e-learning platform aimed at bringing knowledge about food and agriculture to education professionals. From April 2019 through 2020, the program reached 243 educational stakeholders across Ontario, the majority of which came from urban areas, where traditionally the agriculture knowledge gap is widest.
“We are so excited to be able to take a successful education program and offer it nationally,” said Johanne Ross, Executive Director of AITC-C. “This support through our long-standing partnership with Bayer allows us to continuously improve AITC resources for members of our educational community, who have the biggest impact on future generations across Canada.”
BOF will equip educators to deliver factual, relevant, and balanced information from across the agri-food sector into Canadian classrooms. Through the e-learning platform, teachers will gain the knowledge and confidence to present foundational topics in agriculture and food to students, as well as learn about how the sector relates to their daily life and well-being.
“Our connection with food from an early age is vital and education drives that connection,” said Trish Jordan, Senior Business Partner, Government & Industry Affairs with Bayer. “Building good food habits and developing a positive relationship with Canada’s food system needs to be taught to students in an engaging way, and we know AITC has the right programs to make this happen.”
Agriculture in the Classroom Canada (AITC-C) is a Canadian charitable organization with a vision to bring agriculture to every classroom, inspiring every student. Alongside ten provincial member organizations, AITC-C provides accurate, balanced and current, curriculum-linked resources for students at all grade levels.
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