CANADA
Agri-food, trade, national security leaders call for food security to become a national security priority
University of Calgary
Hosted by the University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (UCVM), The Simpson Centre for Food & Agricultural Policy, Canadian Federation of Agriculture, and the Canadian Pork Council, the two-day workshop brought together representatives from organizations including the Canadian Cattle Association, Dairy Farmers of Canada, Farm Credit Canada, TELUS Agriculture, Royal Military College of Canada, and the University of Guelph to examine how geopolitical tensions, biological threats, trade disruptions and supply chain vulnerabilities are reshaping Canada’s food system.
The resulting report, Securing Canada’s Food System: A Resilient Food System for an Age of Geopolitical Uncertainty, outlines seven recommendations, including formally recognizing food security within Canada’s National Security Framework, developing a national strategy for critical food infrastructure and farm inputs, investing in domestic processing and storage capacity, and strengthening biosecurity and cybersecurity.
“Canada has an opportunity to strengthen its food system before the next major disruption occurs,” said Dr. Guillaume Lhermie, professor of animal health economics at the University of Calgary and lead author of the report. “Our recommendations focus on protecting critical infrastructure, improving preparedness and building resilience across the entire agri-food sector.”
Despite being one of the world’s largest agricultural exporters, workshop participants noted that Canada remains heavily dependent on imported fresh produce, critical farm inputs and global supply chains.
“A large part of our vulnerability is our heavy reliance on foreign imports for fresh fruits and vegetables, but also value-added food products,” said Dr. Sara Edge, Arrell chair in food, policy & society at the University of Guelph. “If any of that gets interrupted, we would run out of food quite quickly.”
The workshop also explored where food security fits within Canada’s broader security agenda.
“Food security absolutely has a place in the national security conversation,” said Dr. Adam Chapnick, professor of defence studies at the Royal Military College of Canada. “National security is as much about resilience as it is about anything else.”
The report identifies actions to strengthen Canada’s long-term food resilience, including protecting critical food infrastructure, increasing domestic processing capacity, coordinating food resilience across government departments, strengthening biosecurity, and accelerating adoption of Canadian agri-food innovation.
Background
The recommendations stem from the workshop “Is Food Policy Part of National Security Policy?”, held in Calgary on May 12-13, 2026.
Participants represented expertise across agriculture, food manufacturing, veterinary medicine, trade, defence, public policy, investment, food innovation and supply chain resilience. Presentations and focus group discussions were analyzed using an international systems framework to identify policy actions at the international, national and community levels.
Subject of Research
Not applicable
Article Title
Securing Canada’s Food System: A Resilient Food System for an Age of Geopolitical Uncertainty
Article Publication Date
10-Jul-2026
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