Gabrielle Cassagnes Lemoine
On August 30, Alex Tyrrell, leader of the Green Party of Quebec, presented the candidacy of Jean-Pierre Duford, the Green Party's official candidate for the 2022 general election in the Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne riding. Together, they took a public stance on the whole issue of local food, an essential step in the energy transition. The Parti Vert du Québec proposes to tackle the problem of imported food by building a vast network of public urban and rural greenhouses powered by hydro-electricity. The PVQ also wants to promote local food and food security, while offering greater accessibility to organic and Quebec-grown products.
Alex Tyrrell and his candidate spoke about the Green Party of Quebec's urban agriculture policy, the national greenhouse project. The Parti Vert du Québec proposes to tackle the problem of imported food by building a vast network of public urban and rural greenhouses powered by hydro-electricity. These greenhouses will be built by Hydro-Québec through a new subsidy program before being handed over to local communities in every district of Quebec. The greenhouses will benefit from financial support and free electricity provided by the government. They will be democratically managed by users and community members. The food produced will be distributed to residents at very low cost to avoid food waste. Beyond providing local food, creating jobs and building vibrant local communities, this program aims to concretely reduce the role of capitalism in Quebec's food system, while stimulating a culture of mutual aid, local solidarity and cooperation. "This is something we want to do province-wide. We're fortunate in Quebec to have a surplus of hydroelectricity, and we should put that energy to work for communities by producing local food year-round, here in Quebec," said Alex Tyrrell, party leader.
The Green Party of Quebec is also proposing to subsidize the construction of small-scale passive greenhouses to promote local food production and food security.