Selecting Nova Scotia's quality foods, Op-ed

NOTE: The following is an Op-Ed feature by Agriculture Minister Brooke Taylor.

Agriculture contributes much to the social and economic prosperity of Nova Scotia. Last year, agriculture was worth an estimated $900 million to this province. Our agriculture and food industry, which is made up mostly of small and medium-sized businesses, is positioned to succeed.

As Nova Scotia's Minister of Agriculture, I am proud of our farmers and the local foods they produce. I want to remind everyone to remember the benefits our province's farmers provide to your family or business and to remember to buy locally. Buying and selling local is not a quick fix, but it can be part of the solution. It has the potential to deliver economic success to producers and good value to consumers.

More and more people are looking for nutritious, safe local food. Nova Scotia farmers supply many products. Every step of food's journey, from the farm gate to the consumer -- including home delivery services, farmers' and farm markets -- are part of the local food systems you may have in your community.

Recently, the province announced an investment of $2.3 million to develop local food systems over the next three years. This funding will afford us the opportunity to work to improve customer access through farmers' markets and other direct marketing venues, to develop connections between rural and urban food systems, and to support direct-to-consumer marketing initiatives.

Buying local contributes to environmental sustainability by enabling producers, processors and consumers to reduce the amount of kilometres food travels and their carbon footprint.

The opportunity to improve the competitiveness of local food systems is a wonderful opportunity for us all. It will make it easier and more convenient for more Nova Scotians to buy local foods, and create a winning situation for the agriculture and food industry, consumers and rural communities.

The new funding will complement projects already underway. For example, our Select Nova Scotia program, launched last year, continues to evolve. Many local businesses are highlighted through advertising, promotions, our website and community events, such as the extremely popular Incredible Picnic. Through Select Nova Scotia, we continue to work on expanding and creating new markets for local farms and farm-based businesses, while building a demand for local foods.

Nova Scotians have shown strong support for local foods, with thousands attending the Select Nova Scotia's inaugural Incredible Picnic to celebrate local food and community at locations across the province this past August. Together, the province, along with the local food sector, will ensure local foods are available to all Nova Scotians. Over the holidays, I encourage you to buy local by selecting Nova Scotia's legendary high quality foods to entertain and enjoy!