The Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation is taking steps to bolster its food security.
This spring Tsq̓éscen̓, located at Canim Lake, has partnered with Sustainable Food Security to build two large greenhouses and establish a food forest at the old cabbage patch, a former commercial farm. Dubbed the Tsq̓éscen̓/Broken Rock Greenhouse Project, if all goes to plan it will be up and running by the end of May of this year.
“Our Secwepemc practice and value is to feed the people. Food sovereignty is our goal and Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation is proud of the initiative and hard work of Spelqweqs to launch this exciting project. Our Tsq̓éscen’emc will benefit greatly,” Kukpi7 (Chief) Helen Henderson of Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation said.
The Broken Rock Greenhouse Project was started after the Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation received funding from the New Relationship Trust to enhance local food security. Council chose to revitalize the old commercial farm which many older Tsq̓éscen̓ band members worked at when it was open in the 1960s, primarily growing cabbage due to the soil.
Rather than just reopen the old farm, Henderson and the council chose to revitalize it into a facility that can grow food year-round. This will consist of a dome-shaped greenhouse measuring 33 feet across with 815 square feet of space and a hoop house measuring 25 feet by 50 feet. Together these greenhouses will provide 2,000 square feet of growing space.
To make this happen the Spelqweqs Development Corp, Tsq̓éscen̓’s business and economic development arm, reached out to Sustainable Food Security, an Alberta-based consulting group dedicated to improving food security across Canada. It is led by Raygan Solotki, its lead executive officer, who herself experienced food insecurity and hunger growing up. This experience motivated her to ensure others, especially underserved communities, did not suffer in the same way.
“From our perspective, the goal is simple: more food on more plates. Food is a basic right. By improving food access, we foster greater equality, boost health outcomes, help communities reconnect with their food and land, and bolster local economies,” Solotki explained. “We also help communities ensure a sustainable, reliable food supply in the face of crises such as forest fire evacuations, climate change impacts, and health emergencies such as the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Solotki said that if you miss meals or rely on low-nutrition food due to a lack of other options, you are food insecure. She added that sadly many members of Tsq̓éscen̓ face barriers in getting the food they need, noting healthy food is often out of reach due to higher cost and shorter shelf life.
That’s why Solotki is eager to help the community build their own local solution to this problem, noting they are most effective in dealing with food insecurity in her experience.
“For decades, remote Canadian communities have endured sky-high food prices and a scarcity of fresh, healthy food. It’s a major reason for the physical and mental health problems we see in remote communities,” Solotki said. “Food accessibility deteriorated during the Covid-19 pandemic and is worsening further because of inflation and supply-chain challenges. I am inspired by Tsq̓éscen̓ First Nation and the growing number of communities taking food security into their own hands.”
Solotki said the food grown in the greenhouses will be chosen by the community and with the addition of heat sources the greenhouses should be able to grow crops year round. Typically she said she encourages the community she works with to grow nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables such as carrots, potatoes, lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, berries and broccoli. She added that traditional Indigenous plants will also be grown by Tsq̓éscen̓.
On April 13 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Solotki and the band will be hosting an open house at the project site on Cabbage Road to inform the community about the project and invite them to participate as volunteers. If all goes according to plan she added the greenhouses should begin producing food ready to harvest by the end of the year.
“We are honoured to be a part of this project and will do everything we can to ensure its success,” Solotki said. “We believe the work that Tsq̓éscen̓ and Sustainable Food Security are doing is helping to usher in a new era of self-reliant communities where everyone has the food they need to thrive.Tsq̓éscen̓ will stand as a beacon for other communities ready to enact local solutions around food security.”