Every week, TVO.org talks Food Chain — snack on these policy, nutrition and food safety nuggets from around the province and beyond.
Jilted by Heinz, Leamington rebounds with French’s
Leamington, Ont., has gotten involved in a competitive spat between two condiment giants. After Heinz made a recent play for mustard giant French’s territory by putting out a mustard of its own, French’s struck back by launching its own brand of ketchup.
Thanks to Heinz’s 2014 decision to abandon tomato-growing mecca Leamington, however, French’s has since moved in and now buys the Leamington tomatoes Heinz once did. It led one Ontario resident to switch to the brand, and make a Facebook post about it that went viral, much to the gratitude of Leamington residents and area farmers.
Tough times? Not so much for restaurants
Despite fears of an economic slowdown in Canada, restaurants appear to be doing just fine.
Industry association Restaurants Canada says spending on restaurants since the Second World War has risen at more than twice the rate of inflation, from about $2 billion to $72 billion. And it expects that sales will grow again for the 25th year in a row.
But not all is rosy. “In the last 12 months we’ve had more independent restaurants close than we’ve ever seen in the Canadian restaurant industry,” market researcher Robert Carter told CBC.ca.
Fighting pests with plants over pesticides
Scientists in London, Ont., are trying to use plants rather than pesticides to prevent pests attacking fruit and vegetable crops in greenhouses.
In what’s described as a “push-pull strategy,” scientists have genetically modified plants to increase their attractiveness to flying insects. Those plants then “pull” insects away from another group of plants being grown for food.
A second type of plant that releases chemicals unattractive to bugs is also used to “push” insects away from the same crop.
“It would be one tool growers could use in combination with other chemical sprays or natural predators that are being used in the greenhouse already,” Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada scientist Ian Scott told the London Free Press.
So about veganism being a creed…
The Ontario Human Rights Commission wants to put to rest media stories that claim it recognized veganism as a creed protected under the Human Rights Code to rest.
“To be clear, the policy does not say one way or the other whether ethical veganism is a creed. Indeed, it is not the OHRC’s role to determine whether or not a certain belief is a creed. Specific facts and context are needed for those kinds of determinations to be made. Ultimately, courts or a tribunal will make those kinds of decisions,” the commission said Thursday.
What the new policy does do is open up the possibility that belief systems not traditionally considered worthy of human rights protection could be in the future. Technology and culture writer Navneet Alang writes that the issue of how to decide which groups’ rights are officially protected “is one that will become increasingly important.”
Government promises Ontario farmers a tax break
In the Feb. 25 budget, the provincial government promised to make it easier for farmers to diversify their business.
The agriculture industry has complained that the current tax system discourages members from adding processing and manufacturing operations on their farms. Such changes are taxed at the same property tax rate as large industrial operations.
Ever eager to show it is serious about creating more jobs in rural communities, the budget commits to changing that.
“The province will be working with the farming community and the municipal sector to provide sustainable property tax treatment to farmers who engage in small-scale, value-added activities as part of their farming business, while maintaining a level playing field for large processors,” the budget document says.
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