By William Crooks
Local Journalism Initiative
A new initiative is helping children across the Eastern Townships get a literal taste of their local agricultural landscape. Through a program called Les Petits ambassadeurs, 22 early childhood centres are introducing locally grown food into their menus and engaging children in hands-on agricultural education, thanks to a coordinated effort by the Conseil de l’industrie bioalimentaire de l’Estrie (CIBLE).
The program, which began in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, aims to increase the use of local products in public institutions. “They wanted to find a way to have more local produce in places like kindergartens and other institutions,” explained Johanick Riendeau, Executive Director of CIBLE.
Estrie is the 15th region to adopt the initiative. Riendeau originally reported 17 participating centres but clarified in an interview that the number has since grown. “It said 17 kindergartens, but it’s more like 22,” she said. “Out of those 22, we have at least six establishments that are certified right now.”
To become certified, early childhood centres must meet seven out of ten local sourcing targets across categories like vegetables, fruit, dairy and protein. They must also conduct at least two educational activities each year related to food. “You can bring a farmer to your kindergarten, you can go to a farm, you can do a lot of activities,” Riendeau said. “Those two activities are really important for the educational purpose of the children.”
She acknowledged that the concept of “local food” can be abstract to young children, but added, “To know how to grow a tomato or a pumpkin, that’s our goal.”
Riendeau said the program also reaches beyond the children. “The parents are the ones who are doing the groceries, so by teaching the kids, we’re kind of teaching the adults also,” she said.
She praised the dedication of participating centres; especially given the challenges they face. “They work with a lot of budget restrictions,” she said. “It’s way easier to do business with a big supplier like GFS or Sysco than with a lot of small companies. But they believe in buying local and keeping the money in our ecosystem.”
