Feds providing $120M to help northern communities with food security

Mar 15, 2023

The Government of Canada is allocating $120 million to help over 100 northern communities implement their own food security programs.

Dan Vandal, Minister of Northern Affairs, PrairiesCan and CanNor, said this funding will help the areas getting hit the hardest by rising food prices and operating costs.

The funds are coming from the Harvesters Support Grant, which provides funding for traditional hunting, harvesting, and food-sharing activities, and the Community Food Programs Fund which provides funding for community food-sharing initiatives including group ordering, and Elder and school meal programs.

“Indigenous and northern communities know how to best support their own food priorities,” Vandal said. “These initiatives are central to our government’s response to food security in the North and Arctic and will help strengthen food sovereignty in northern and isolated communities.”

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Video: Dicamba Returns for Georgia Farmers: What the New EPA Ruling Means for Cotton Growers

After being unavailable in 2024 due to registration issues, dicamba products are returning for Georgia farmers this growing season — but under strict new conditions.

In this report from Tifton, Extension Weed Specialist Stanley Culpepper explains the updated EPA ruling, including new application limits, mandatory training requirements, and the need for a restricted use pesticide license. Among the key changes: a cap of two ½-pound applications per year and the required use of an approved volatility reduction agent with every application.

For Georgia cotton producers, the ruling is significant. According to Taylor Sills with the Georgia Cotton Commission, the vast majority of cotton planted in the state carries the dicamba-tolerant trait — meaning farmers had been paying for technology they couldn’t use.

While environmental groups have expressed concerns over spray drift, Georgia growers have reduced off-target pesticide movement by more than 91% over the past decade. Still, this two-year registration period will come with increased scrutiny, making stewardship and compliance more important than ever.