The Robertson Building

This fall the Robertson Building hosted a contingent of Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) representatives who were in Toronto to attend their National convention and trade show. The Robertson Building was one stop on a tour of interesting local venues, flavours, and people that work to uphold environmental, organic, and sustainable values.

Part of their curiosity involved not only the heritage building, but also
what happens in this creative space. They were impressed by the community of creative and socially innovative tenants who fill our
spaces with dynamic ideas, programs, and initiatives.  The group was also impressed by our living, breathing biowall and our commitment to biodiversity and species conservation on the green roof. Many delegates were intrigued by the potential for organic rooftop food production in an urban area as a mechanism to support local flavour, local food production, and improved food security in Canadian cities.

Back at the convention, the group was introduced to the inaugural set of National Organic Products Regulations with the hope that the first set of national organic product standards would be born as a result of the convention.

The Federal government first began discussions about developing a
national framework to support organic food production in Canada in 1990. In 1995, a draft set of regulations were developed and then turned down by stakeholders. In 1999, the Standards Council of Canada approved a national voluntary standard for organic agriculture. In 2002, revisions to these voluntary standards led to improvements and eventually to
their approval, 16 years later, as a National Standard for Canada in
2006. Watch for this logo as the National Standards for Organic Products move across the country.

For additional information contact CHFA Director of Regulatory Affairs
& Quality Assurance: awilkie@chfa.ca
www.chfa.ca