Today, the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, and Sophie Chatel, Member of Parliament for Pontiac, visited Le Grenier des Collines food bank facility in Val-des-Monts, Quebec, where they highlighted Budget 2023 investments that will strengthen food security in local communities and make life more affordable while building a healthy future. Budget 2023 proposes to provide $10 million in 2023-24 to top up the Local Food Infrastructure Fund (LFIF) to strengthen food security in communities across Canada. This new phase of the LFIF will be launched shortly.
Minister Bibeau and MP Chatel also met with agriculture and food security stakeholders during a roundtable in Gracefield. Minister Bibeau also went to Brownsburg-Chatham, accompanied by Stéphane Lauzon, MP for Argenteuil - La Petite-Nation, to visit the Argenteuil MRC community agriculture project.
The LFIF is a $70-million federal government initiative that supports not-for-profit organizations and community-led efforts in strengthening local food systems to improve food security. Since it first launched in August 2019, the LFIF has committed $55.4 million to support over 897 vital food security projects across Canada. Of this total, 188 projects were in Indigenous communities, including community gardens and kitchens, refrigerated trucks and storage units for donated food and greenhouses.
Le Grenier des Collines received a total of $73,159 through past phases of the LFIF to purchase kitchen equipment and acquire a refrigerated truck. These community projects allowed the organization to increase food processing capacity, while also improving distribution to community members in the region.
The Government of Canada is also providing new, targeted inflation relief to Canadians hardest hit by rising food prices. Budget 2023 proposes to introduce a one-time Grocery Rebate providing $2.5 billion in targeted inflation relief for 11 million low- and modest-income Canadians and families.
Budget 2023 investments will support many Canadians in reducing their financial burdens and help them build a healthy and prosperous future.
