Nourishing Nova Scotia: Local Solutions
Nova Scotia’s food security landscape is rapidly evolving—yet local, innovative, and equity-centered work is flourishing. Across the province, a tapestry of programs is proving that community-driven action can address hunger, build economic resilience, and support local farmers.
Food Recovery and Community Action
Food recovery efforts are making a meaningful dent in local hunger and food waste. Groups like Second Harvest and local food recovery programs ensure that surplus food from retailers, restaurants, and farms is redirected to those who need it most. These programs help prevent thousands of kilograms of perfectly healthy food from being wasted each year. Circular food hubs and distributed models are rising in Nova Scotia, knitting together producers, distributors, and community partners for systemic impact.
Feed Nova Scotia & Hope Blooms: Grassroots Innovation
Feed Nova Scotia, a provincially coordinated network of food banks and meal programs, now leads innovative work to address both immediate need and long-term solutions. Its Innovation Grants in 2025 supported 14 projects, from youth-focused farming education to mobile food markets and new community food hubs. Hope Blooms continues to inspire, with its urban and rural farming projects, food education, and Black/Indigenous/Racialized youth employment models that grow over 15,000 pounds (about 6803.88 kg) of produce for affordable markets—all aimed at food sovereignty.
Shortening Local Supply Chains
A vital piece of long-term food security is shortening supply chains—getting Nova Scotia farmers to grow for Nova Scotia markets. Local food and shorter supply chains are both good for provincial food security and for reducing environmental impact: fewer food miles mean lower emissions. Local farmers’ markets are multiplying, but building viable logistics and storage, distribution networks, and processing capacity— in a food system designed for global agribusiness—remains a significant challenge. Expanding the infrastructure for local distribution and processing will be essential to making this shift sustainable and inclusive.
Strategic Connections: RCFNS’s Role
The RCFNS executive director will be attending the Connections 2025 Food Forum—an event focused on bringing together food providers, policymakers, innovators, and community members to envision and enact a resilient, local food system. RCFNS continues to build bridges between sectors, fostering food system change rooted in equity, regional resilience, and support for rural and marginalized communities.
Call to Action:
What food recovery, community kitchen, or local farm-to-market initiatives exist in your region? How can we nurture the local infrastructure and partnerships needed for a truly food-secure and environmentally resilient Nova Scotia? With collective vision and equity at the centre, we can transform how we feed ourselves and care for one another.
