Caroline Wawzonek, Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment, issued the following statement on Canada’s Agriculture Day:

“Today is Canada’s Agriculture Day, celebrating a critical industry that touches everyone’s lives. In the Northwest Territories (NWT), agriculture is literally and figuratively a growing sector, with initiatives and projects in every region across the territory.

“Agriculture is an important part of the food security conversation happening in the NWT, as well as a primary mandate item under economic diversification. Providing the tools and support to entrepreneurs setting up in agriculture can stimulate numerous other activities in a community. Agriculture projects can supply fresh food to communities without the high costs of shipping and limited shelf life. They can create primary and secondary economies, like the need for packaging and delivering products. They also feed into the NWT’s authentic brand, from Great Slave Lake fish to Mackenzie Valley furs to Northwest Territories arts. 

“This year’s celebration in the NWT showcases some of the foods and recipes from chefs across the territory. Celebrating local foods, recipes will be released throughout the day on ITI’s news feed. Everyone is encouraged to share their own recipes or ways they connect to local agriculture to join in on the national activities happening throughout the day.

“Agriculture is a big conversation across the country. The NWT is collaborating with federal, provincial and territorial partners through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (CAP), a suite of funding programs. NWT engagements, which will inform the next five-year federal CAP policy, are active until the end of March 2022, and the information gathered from the territorial engagements will ultimately contribute to more focused funding programs for agriculture across Canada.

“We all love food. It sustains us in many ways, and I believe the NWT and its proven entrepreneurship is perfectly positioned to capitalize on this opportunity to bolster another northern industry with made-in-the-north approaches and innovations.”