feature chevron Canada partners with food first newfoundland for food system kickstarter

Finding sustainable solutions to social issues was the catalyst behind the first ever St. John's Food System Kickstarter. Chevron Canada, in partnership with Food First Newfoundland, launched the grant application recently to find innovative ways to address complex issues within the local food system.

Finding sustainable solutions to social issues was the catalyst behind the first ever St. John's Food System Kickstarter. Chevron Canada, in partnership with Food First Newfoundland, launched the grant application recently to find innovative ways to address complex issues within the local food system.

“The St. John’s Kickstarter Grant was established to encourage local organizations to bring forward social innovation initiatives that address the systemic issue of food insecurity in St. John’s, Newfoundland,” comments Jacqueline Harris, social risk & investment advisor at Chevron Canada.

“Many of these systemic issues were recently identified through our completion of a community-led food assessment.”

The St. John’s Food System Kickstarter opened to applications April 21.

Shortlisted participants were then asked to complete a two-minute video pitch of their idea to improve the local food system. To assist in their pitch preparation, each participant had access to experienced volunteer coaches John Gusuhe, digital senior producer at CBC, and Heather French, startup business advisor at NLOWE. On May 15, all grant applicants had an opportunity to further pitch their idea to a panel of judges. The panel included Harris along with St. John’s Mayor Danny Breen and Memorial University Manager for Social Enterprise Nicole Helwig.

An online voting poll was also setup for the general public to weigh in.

With many excellent ideas presented, the final recipients of the St. John’s Food System Kickstarter grant, supported by CBU were Fish Market App by Mirella Leis and Afro Kitchen NL by Sunday and Christiana Emmanuel, in first and second place respectively.

Check out the video announcement of these winners on the Food First NL Facebook page.

The Fish Market App seeks to address the issue of lack of access to quality fish at reasonable prices by local consumers. Using a social enterprise model and a mobile application, the Fish Market App puts local consumers in touch directly with local fisherman to purchase freshly caught local fish. For an additional fee, subscribers may even be able to use a GPS feature to be alerted when the fisherman is arriving on shore with a fresh catch.

The Afro Kitchen seeks to address the issue of lack of access to cultural foods for local residents. Over 60 percent of residents of several wards within St. John’s rated this as their number one issue. The Afro Kitchen helps newcomers experience at bit of home as they settle into a new country, while also offering an opportunity for all residents to experience food from another culture.

“Chevron Canadais very pleased with the outcomes of this partnership initiative,” said Harris. “It is a partnership that is multi-sector, community-led and stakeholder informed, innovative, addresses systemic issues and aligns with our values of diversity and inclusion.”

Check out these resources to learn more about the project and food insecurity issues in Newfoundland.

• Find out more from the food assessment survey including issues and opportunities for food action in St. John's
• Visit the St. John’s Food Assessment Website
• Read Food First Newfoundland's project report Our Food Newfoundland about community-led food assessments  
• Watch a panel discussion: Social Innovation and Enterprise in the Food System
• Watch the CBC’s series Fed Up
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  • How this woman's app is offering one of many paths we need to tackle food security

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