Thunder Bay + Area Food Strategy

08/11/2025

This page is no longer active! As we continue our work as the Food Action Network of Northwestern Ontario, we have moved to new social media pages as well! To stay up to date with our latest news, events, and more, go follow us over on on insta and on Facebook!!

08/06/2025

Follow our new account!

New name, same mission: the Thunder Bay + Area Food Strategy is now the Food Action Network of Northwestern Ontario (FAN-NWO)!
This name reflects who we’ve become: a regional network advancing food justice, food sovereignty, and community-led change across Northwestern Ontario. We have officially incorporated as a non-profit!
We’ll be sharing more about this evolution in the coming weeks. In the meantime, if you’re passionate about food systems and community action, we invite you to get involved. Visit us on social media and our website nwofood.ca!

07/11/2025

We’re hiring! The Food Action Network of Northwestern Ontario (FAN-NWO), formerly the Thunder Bay + Area Food Strategy, is looking for a Regional Food Systems Coordinator to join our core team.

This strategic, community-rooted role will support local producers and food workers, lead events and engagement campaigns, and help revitalize TBayInSeason. You’ll also work closely with the Executive Director to shape the future of the organization and regional food systems across Northwestern Ontario.

Position Details:
• 30 hrs/week
• $30/hr + benefits
• 1 year contract with possibility of extension
• Based in the Thunder Bay area

Apply by 5:00 PM on Friday, July 18, 2025 by sending a resume and short cover letter to [email protected].

We especially encourage applications from youth under 30, and from those with lived or community-based experience in food systems.

Full job posting here: https://tbfoodstrategy.com/now-hiring-regional-food-systems-coordinator/

P.S. You might still see our old name around—this position is posted on our original site (www.tbfoodstrategy.com)—but we’ve got exciting news. We’ve officially incorporated as the Food Action Network of Northwestern Ontario (FAN-NWO). A full rebrand and new website are on the way. Same great team, same community-driven mission, just with a name that better reflects the regional work we’ve always done and the big work ahead.

04/22/2025

Let's talk about data collection!
Join us for a collaborative afternoon focused on how data is collected in food access services - why it matters, what's working (and what's not), and how we can make these processes more respectful, easier, and centered around community needs.

This free event is open to anyone who accesses food banks, as well as those who work or volunteer in food bank and food access settings and/or collect frontline data. Your voice and perspective matter - come share, listen, and shape better practices together!

When: Thursday, May 8th from 12:30 – 4:00pm
Where: Oliver Road Community Centre, 563 Oliver Road
What:
12:30 - Lunch
1:00 - Panel Discussion (featuring lived experience, frontline staff, and data collectors)
2:00 - Feedback on Current Local Data Practices
3:00 - Workshopping Solutions

Register by scanning the QR Code or by emailing Courtney at [email protected]

04/09/2025

Join us Thursday, April 17th from 5-7 pm for a free moderated event to meet your federal candidates and share your thoughts on food systems in Canada. All declared candidates for Thunder Bay - Superior North and Thunder Bay - Rainy River have been invited. There will be snacks!

Bring a friend, help spread the word, and submit questions in advance through the QR code or this link: https://forms.gle/iZJhM5sreA536iaG9

We hope to see you there!

02/09/2025

📢 A new garden club aims to launch in Gillies Township next month. Stay tuned to this page for details about how you can be involved. 🌱

Thunder Bay + Area Food Strategy
The Walleye - Thunder Bay's Arts & Culture Magazine

02/07/2025

Hello food friends!

Our whole purpose is to bring people together to build a socially just, ecologically sustainable, and economically resilient food system. The threat of tariffs highlights the importance of having strongly supported regional food systems, but we need people in place to build this capacity. We’ve accomplished a ton with just two part time staff, and any support will help us stay employed to keep this momentum going.

Our friends at have generously set up this donation link for us (on top of supporting our incorporation process - thank you!!). Any donation made by February 28 will be matched up to $25,000, and the extended CRA charitable donation deadline means you can claim this on your 2024 tax return. Federal and provincial tax credits on top of the cost matching opportunity mean that a $1,000 donation could cost as little as $560 after refunds but provide $2,000 in support! Give if and as you can, and we can't wait to see what comes next! 🌱🍎💚
To donate: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/126913

12/16/2024

On December 5th, we hosted our 2nd annual Emergency Food Plan tabletop exercise and WOW - what an inspiring day of shared knowledge and dedication. We're so grateful for everyone's dedication to strengthening this critical work. 🙌💛
Special thanks to David Rasi from Emergency Management Ontario for facilitating this year's exercise and ensuring Courtney could participate! The energy and connection that comes from working together are unmatched. Here's to building a more resilient and connected community 💪🌱

11/04/2024

😁 Skillsteading Workshops in Nolalu and Gillies Township

What is Skillsteading?
Skillsteading combines homesteading lifestyles by learning and practicing how-to skills. It involves learning and mastering a variety of self-sufficiency skills, such as growing food, woodworking, food preservation, and other traditional crafts. The goal is to become more self-reliant and capable of sustaining oneself and one’s household with minimal reliance on external resources.

This practice is appealing to those interested in sustainable living, reducing their environmental footprint, or simply enjoying the process of creating and maintaining things by hand. It includes a community aspect, where people share knowledge and skills with each other, fostering a sense of collaboration and mutual support.

Saturday, May 3 & Sunday, May 4, 2025
Nolalu Community Centre
2266 HWY 588, Nolalu, Ontario, P0T 2K0

✅ Water bath canning basics ($)
✅ Pressure canning basics ($)

Registration details will be announced in January 2025. Stay tuned to this page for details.

(FYI: Thunder Bay + Area Food Strategy The Walleye - Thunder Bay's Arts & Culture Magazine Kevin Holland - MPP Thunder Bay-Atikokan

11/04/2024

This week (November 5 to 7) Matawa Health Cooperative is holding their first Moose Camp at the Training and Wellness site - the events will run daily from 10 am to 9 pm, all are welcome!