The last thing grain farmers want to read is that “glutenfree”(GF) is the nation’s number-one food trend according to Restaurants Canada (formerly the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association). But bear with me as I briefly take you inside the belly of the beast.

A well-known Irish folk song, “Whiskey in the Jar,” ends with its doomed subject wistfully reminiscing about life’s simple pleasures, especially beer. He certainly doesn’t long for a glass of Pinot Noir on his way to the gallows.

Fermentation is one of the oldest methods of preparing and preserving food.

One of Western Canada’s best-kept secrets is in plain sight at the University of Alberta campus in Edmonton. This unassuming building is a development centre for food products and ingredients, including a pilot plant, where entrepreneurs and companies can test ideas to see if they’ll make it in the real world.

An evolution in customer demand is driving the changing face of Canada’s baking industry, from research to sales.

The digital era is both a blessing and a curse.
Everywhere you turn there is information overload, but the quality and reliability of the data can be underwhelming. That’s OK when you’re looking for the latest movie review, but what if you’re seeking advice on the proper foods to eat and how to maintain your health? Where do you turn for guidance you can trust?

While no one can argue that mothers’ often-heard advice—“eat it, it’s good for you”—was necessarily wrong, it takes far more than that home kitchen assurance to convince Health Canada a Canadian food product is worthy of a therapeutic health claim.

Look carefully. Nestled among the whiskies in Edmonton’s Chateau Louis Liquor Store, you might spot a frosted white bottle with Japanese lettering, labelled “iichiko.” Peer at the fine print and you can pick out the description, “The Mugi Shochu.”

It is four kilometres from David and Barb Wedman’s farm to the south edge of the City of Edmonton’s corporate limit. When the family homestead was first settled in 1892, the city was a full day’s travel away. Five generations later, irritated commuters crowd the Wedmans’ farm equipment on the roads as they rush to town.

Walk through the aisle of any Canadian grocery store and you’ll be bombarded with a huge variety of labels and product claims. Some products market themselves as organic, humane or natural, while others boast of being GMO-free, probiotic or sustainable.