Fostering champions and advocates among dietitians, chefs, and food writers to speak on behalf of Canadian-grown food and agriculture is crucial. One effective method to achieve this is through farm tours, which provide these professionals with firsthand farm experiences and a deeper understanding of agricultural practices.
Building awareness and trust in food and farming is a challenging task. Urban consumers often encounter documentaries that criticize some farming practices and depict large farms with extensive equipment and numerous animals negatively. Such portrayals can create distrust and promote misinformation, as many urban Canadians do not have the opportunity to experience farming in their daily lives. This can lead to misconceptions about where their food comes from.

There is a significant gap in knowledge about food production in Canada. Many Canadians are now several generations removed from a direct connection to farming or ranching. This knowledge gap results in misinformation and misunderstandings, affecting policy-making, consumer advice, and even education. Consequently, frustration arises within the farming community when policies seem illogical or misinformed statements spread.
Canadian Food Focus addresses this gap by organizing annual on-farm tours for professionals across the country. Participants range from dietitians and educators to bloggers, TV personalities, chefs, and policymakers. These tours foster open, honest, and transparent discussions, encouraging participants to ask any questions they might have. Listening to these professionals’ concerns also helps Canadian Food Focus staff to identify and address key issues.
Some common concerns include:
- “What are the environmental impacts of food production?” – Food blogger
- “Is animal agriculture sustainable at the rate that the world is consuming animal products?” – Dietitian
- “How are farms thinking about food waste, dealing with food waste, and planning for the future with no food waste?” – Chef
These concerns often highlight sustainability in food production. Through these tours, participants visit farms and ranches, speak directly with farming families, and witness generational farming practices. These interactions lead to many ‘aha’ moments, where participants gain new insights and understanding, enhancing their confidence when discussing food production with clients or followers.

Surveys show the effectiveness of these tours, with only 26% of participants feeling well-informed about farming practices before the tour, rising to 100% feeling well-informed afterward. Post-tour knowledge also increases significantly in areas such as pesticide use, genetic modification, and hormone or antibiotic use.
By educating food professionals one at a time, Canadian Food Focus is building a stronger understanding that agriculture strives for sustainability, thereby increasing awareness and trust in this vital industry.

Dorothy Long
Home Economist and Managing Director, Canadian Food Focus
Dorothy is a passionate advocate of Canadian food and farming. She holds degrees in home economics and education from the University of Saskatchewan, leveraging her background to promote greater consumer understanding of Canadian food and farming, as well as fostering positive relationships between consumers and farmers.
For over 25 years, Dorothy has organized farm tours for food influencers, such as dietitians, journalists, chefs, and food writers. These tours, which began with Canola Camp in Saskatchewan, have expanded across the country.
Dorothy has also been instrumental in developing a range of agrifood marketing strategies, including CanolaInfo, Saskatchewan Bounty, HealthyFlax, Spread the Mustard, Pick Pork, and the Saskatchewan component of the International Year of the Pulse campaign. In addition to her marketing work, Dorothy served as the Executive Director of Cuisine Canada and the Greenhouse Growers of Saskatchewan. She has written a food column for The Western Producer, edited the Growing Saskatchewan magazine, and co-authored the Discover the Pulse Potential cookbook.
Dorothy believes that food is a powerful connector and the most intimate way that consumers come to understand agriculture. As the Managing Director of Canadian Food Focus with Farm & Food Care Saskatchewan, she spearheads Canadian Food Focus, a public trust initiative and marketing strategy that includes a consumer-friendly website. This project won a national Canadian AgriFood Marketers Alliance Award for Best Website Directed at the Public in 2022. Currently, Dorothy co-chairs the National Consumer Engagement Working Group for AAFC. In 2023, Dorothy was inducted into the Saskatchewan Agriculture Hall of Fame.