Food Security Urged as National Security Priority by Leaders on Trade, Agriculture

Hosted by the University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, the Simpson Centre for Food & Agricultural Policy, the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, and the Canadian Pork Council, a two-day workshop assembled leaders and technical experts from across Canada’s agri-food ecosystem. Participants included representatives from the Canadian Cattle Association, Dairy Farmers of Canada, Farm Credit Canada, TELUS Agriculture, the Royal Military College of Canada, and the University of Guelph. Together, they examined how geopolitical shocks, biological threats, and trade disruptions are colliding with fragile supply chains to reshape Canada’s food security landscape.

The event culminated in a report titled Securing Canada’s Food System: A Resilient Food System for an Age of Geopolitical Uncertainty. Its core message is that resilience must be treated as an operational requirement, not an aspiration—linking national security planning to food system continuity, from farm inputs to processing, logistics, and retail distribution.

Researchers emphasized that Canada’s status as a major agricultural exporter can mask domestic vulnerability. Despite strong production capacity, the country still relies on imported fresh produce, value-added foods, and globally traded inputs that can become unavailable when ports, shipping routes, or supplier networks are disrupted.

A key risk theme was “coupled dependencies,” where multiple weak links—such as fertiliser access, veterinary supply chains, cold-chain logistics, and crop-specific harvesting schedules—interact during crises. In such scenarios, delays cascade: higher input costs, reduced processing throughput, and shortened shelf life can translate quickly into availability shortfalls.

Biosecurity and cybersecurity were highlighted as technical pillars of food resilience. The workshop discussed how disease detection capacity, containment practices, and rapid communication protocols must be coordinated across jurisdictions. At the same time, digital vulnerabilities—ranging from farm management systems to processing facility networks—can amplify physical disruptions by slowing response times.

Workshop speakers argued for treating critical food infrastructure similarly to other national security assets. This includes developing a national strategy for critical farm inputs and storage capacity, so that essential commodities can be sustained during trade shocks and emergency logistics constraints.

“Canada has an opportunity to strengthen its food system before the next major disruption occurs,” said Dr. Guillaume Lhermie, professor of animal health economics at the University of Calgary and lead author of the report. He noted that preparedness should cover the entire agri-food sector, with measurable resilience targets and cross-sector coordination.

Dr. Sara Edge, Arrell chair in food, policy & society at the University of Guelph, stressed the speed of potential shortages: “If any of that gets interrupted, we would run out of food quite quickly,” pointing to the operational consequences of reliance on foreign supply for fresh fruits and vegetables and value-added products.

Further framing was provided by Dr. Adam Chapnick of the Royal Military College of Canada, who said food security belongs in national security deliberations because national security is fundamentally about resilience. The report’s recommendations include coordinating food resilience across government departments and accelerating adoption of Canadian agri-food innovation to reduce systemic risk.