The Future of Agriculture

Agricultural research and development are integral to solving food insecurity. Of the 13 per cent of Canadians struggling with food insecurity,  28 per cent  were of households with a black or Indigenous respondent. In 2012,  52 per cent  of Inuit in Inuit Nugangat aged 25 years and older had recently lived in a household that was struggling with food insecurity. Access to affordable food is a serious issue in these isolated areas, where a 1 kilogram bag of  carrots can cost seven dollars.

The current Canadian government is heavily focused on expanding and simplifying the agriculture industry, and the 2018-19 Canadian budget is allocating  three billion  dollars towards better agriculture for each province and territory. The Canadian government’s commitment to science and innovation is exemplified further by investing $100 million towards agricultural research in the 2016-17 budget.  The 2018 budget  strengthens this with almost $4 billion invested in the Canadian research system.