Where are the Fish? Using a “Fish as Food” Framework to Explore the Thunder Bay Area Fisheries

Kristen Lowitt,Charles Levkoe,Connie Nelson

doi:10.22584/10.22584/nr49.2019.008

Abstract

Where are the Fish? Using a “Fish as Food” Framework to Explore the Thunder Bay Area Fisheries

Highlights

Small-scale fisheries play a vital role in supporting food access and nutrition, as well as in maintaining traditional foodways and local economies for populations living in the world’s rural and remote regions (Bell et al, 2015; Dey, Gosh, Valmonte-Santos, & Rosegrant, 2016; Loring, Gerlach, & Harrison, 2013). This is especially true in places where there is a historical and cultural connection to fishing and limited access to fresh vegetables and other domesticated meats (Islam and Berkes, 2016; Lowitt, 2013).This has been true for the Thunder Bay area, Northwestern Ontario’s largest city, located on the north shore of Lake Superior
Lake Superior is the world’s largest freshwater lake by surface area. and it is rich in biodiversity supporting over thirty native species of fish and many species of birds, amphibians, and mammals along its expansive coastline and on over 2,500 islands (Lake Superior Partnership, 2016; Minnesota Sea Grant, 2014)
Drawing on our interviews with fisheries actors across the Lake Superior region, background information, and a review of relevant policy documents, we address each of these elements in turn

Summary

Introduction

Small-scale fisheries play a vital role in supporting food access and nutrition, as well as in maintaining traditional foodways and local economies for populations living in the world’s rural and remote regions (Bell et al, 2015; Dey, Gosh, Valmonte-Santos, & Rosegrant, 2016; Loring, Gerlach, & Harrison, 2013) This is especially true in places where there is a historical and cultural connection to fishing and limited access to fresh vegetables and other domesticated meats (Islam and Berkes, 2016; Lowitt, 2013).This has been true for the Thunder Bay area, Northwestern Ontario’s largest city, located on the north shore of Lake Superior. The majority of the settler population are of European and Scandinavian descent while Indigenous people make up almost 13% of the city’s population, the highest proportion of urban Indigenous population in southern Canada (Statistics Canada, 2016). Many people are unable to access healthy and preferred foods, with new Canadians, lone-parent families, youth, Indigenous peoples, seniors, women, and racialized peoples vulnerable (Thunder Bay and Area Food Strategy, 2015)

Objectives

Findings

Conclusion