Indigenous and traditional foods in public institutions

Together with Indigenous chefs, Indigenous foods educators, and government partners, Feed BC is working to support public institutions across post-secondary and healthcare sectors, K-12 schools, correctional centres and beyond, to incorporate Indigenous foods.

These resources are intended to grow understanding and respect for Indigenous foods, cultures, histories, and how colonization has affected Indigenous food ways. They provide guidance and support to public institutions in creating food-related facilities, programs, and services that are more inclusive and respectful of distinct Indigenous foods and food cultures across British Columbia.

Cooking in Two Worlds: A Process Guide for Incorporating Indigenous Foods into Institutions

This document, Cooking in Two Worlds:  A process guide (PDF, 2.6 MB), reflects the many Indigenous food values expressed by Elders and Knowledge Holders from across B.C. and examples of what has been successful in public institutions in the past.

It acknowledges the need for institutions to deepen their understanding of cultural safety and humility as groundwork for building relationships with communities to do this work in a good way, and provides guidance on sourcing, preparing, and serving Indigenous foods.

Between September 2023 and January 2024, Feed BC commissioned Osier Consulting to offer a four-part learning series to help prepare B.C. public institutions to incorporate Indigenous foods in a good way. This evaluation (PDF, 300KB) shows how the pilot improved participants knowledge, understanding and skills. For information about future learning opportunities for B.C. public institutions please email FeedBC@gov.bc.ca.

Companion resources

These are two-page summary resources that respond to some of the frequent questions asked by public institutions on Indigenous and traditional foods with reflective activities and scenarios:

• Where do we begin? (PDF, 706KB)
• Why is serving Indigenous food so important? (PDF, 548KB)
• How do we build relationships? (PDF, 381KB)
• Where do we look for Indigenous recipes? (PDF, 331KB)
• Where can we source Indigenous foods? (PDF, 758KB)

Indigenous Cookbooks

Provided to Feed BC by Chef Andrew George, Wet’suwet’en Nation, this Resource of Indigenous Cookbooks (PDF, 132KB) includes Indigenous cookbooks or cookbooks that contain Indigenous recipes.

Research Report

A qualitative study of the barriers and facilitators to serving traditional foods and Indigenous recipes in public institutions in British Columbia, with a focus on health care and post-secondary institutions:

• Traditional Foods and Indigenous Recipes in B.C.'s Public Institutions (PDF, 64MB)
• Addendum to the Traditional Foods and Indigenous Recipes in B.C.’s Public Institutions (PDF, 107KB)