Buying local food to fight climate change Sean Peterson, The Martlet (University of Victoria) VICTORIA -- (CUP) Buying locally produced food can help to fight climate change, say experts, but little is being done to move in that direction. Tom Henry, a farmer on Vancouver Island and the editor of Small Farm Canada magazine, is concerned that consumers and the government are not taking action while agricultural infrastructure in Canada slowly declines. Henry was one of four panelists at an open forum that examined the impact of global warming on British Columbia’s food supply, held at the University of Victoria, on June 1. “There are conferences like this taking place all over the world, yet there isn’t a parallel rise in local food production. I see the local food movement as a glorious cathedral, and the producer as a lone hippy underneath, squatting on the floor, banging two pieces of wilted rhubarb together,” Henry said. One of the key concerns presented was the amount of green house gas produced by current food systems. “We cannot deal with global warming without radical changes to our food system,” said panelist Cliff Stainsby, who is a board member with both Food Secure Canada and the BC Food Systems Network. While food might be inexpensive at the cash register, Stainsby said, the environmental costs of current food practices are too high. To yield 30 kilograms of corn, he said, more than two litres of oil are used 6 to produce the fertilizer, power the farm machinery, irrigate the fields, and create and distribute the pesticides needed for the crop. Localizing farms could be a solution to this problem. Stainsby argued that giving agricultural markets a local focus could reduce the problem of “food miles” -- the distance food is transported prior to consumption. He cited a Canadian study which found that the average food import in Canada travels 4,500 kilometres before it is consumed. But Henry doesn’t believe that local farms can supply the quick fix in the current environment. He stressed the importance of bolstering local farm infrastructure before any solution can move forward. In order for this to happen, Henry said that drastic changes to consumers’ spending habits are required. Stainsby agrees. “The biggest problem that global food efforts face is that we’ ve become used to paying so little for food,” said Stainsby. “There’s a notion floating around that if we buy local, we can reduce the environmental impact of [global warming],” Henry said. “But some changes are going to have to take place before local food can be a viable response.” Henry said that his farm would be hard pressed to supply everyone in the room with locally produced meat in addition to his existing customers. According to Henry, there just isn’t CFS votes for status quo on media policy William Wolfe-Wylie, CUP National Bureau Chief TORONTO -- (CUP) Amid heated debate, the Canadian Federation of Students voted down a motion from the Student Society of McGill University which would have allowed student journalists access to “‘all aspects of the Federation’s general meetings.” “The committee decided to defeat that motion but develop a new one regarding media presence at a general meeting,” said CFS National Chairperson Amanda Aziz. The motion was presented by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) at the 51st semi-annual general meeting of the Canadian Federation of Students and the Canadian Federation of Students-Services. The new motion called for a standing resolution to be adopted which will allow the national executive to extend invitations to media to attend workshops and plenary sessions as they see fit. The new standing resolution also notes that no media shall have speaking privileges at any sessions to which they are invited. “T think it is the status quo,” said Aziz. “The national executive has always been the one to approve guests at the meetings.” According to Adrian Angus, a student with the SSMU delegation, much of the Opposition to the motion centered on a fear of misrepresentation of internal debate. “There’s a fear that if the press is present they won’t be able to say what they want,” said Angus. But he doesn’t think that to be a valid argument. “People should not be advocating things there that they can’t defend,” he added. According to Angus, there was also political concern that having media representatives present for debate would reveal divisions within the organization and fracture an otherwise unified front. Aziz confirmed this point, saying that a unified front is an important aspect of the CFS. “At the end of the day, the goal of the student movement is to present a unified front to government,” she said. Major policy decisions such as this are rarely decided entirely in open plenary. In order to progress more efficiently, motions are recommended to the review of smaller committees consisting of 30 to 40 people, divided under the headings of Budget, Policy, and Organizational and Services Development. These committees then present recommendations to plenary, the final meeting where all motions must be finalized and ratified. At plenary, amendments may be put forward and debated by the representatives of the various students’ unions. Decisions made at plenary are conducted on a one local, one vote system. The SSMU motion was debated in the Organizational and Services Development committee at that meeting before being presented to plenary. For Max Silverman, vice president external of the SSMU, the debate ended in disappointment. “Our entire delegation was quite disappointed and quite shocked by how roundly the motions were rejected,” he said, adding that “the motion that was passed in the end basically reinforced the status quo.” For Silverman, the presence of media at general meetings is not an issue of good policy, it’s an issue of principle. “Tt’s a basic fundamental principle,” he said. “What is possibly hopeful is that we at least opened the debate on it. Hopefully the national executive will take the debate to heart.” enough local food in B.C. to go around, and that needs to change. “Farm numbers continue to decline in Canada and around Victoria. Farmers still can’t find a way to make a living,” said Henry. “Consumers need to adjust their buying habits to support local food,” said Henry. Richard Hebda, a UVic biology professor specializing in climate change, also sat on the panel. Hebda used maps to predict drastic changes to B.C.’s agricultural landscape and the danger to its food supply as the climate warms. But Hebda was optimistic that society can benefit through adaptation and an understanding of the challenges facing both farmers and city-dwellers. Secure, quality food production requires keeping agricultural land as well as diversifying food products and practices, Hebda said. Stainsby also emphasized that farm size is also an important factor in reducing environmental consequences of production. While larger farms employ fewer people per acre, he said, “smaller farms produce far more food per acre...whether you measure that in tons, calories, or dollars, [small farms] always win.”