Let's take the example of The Stop in Toronto, which is a community food centre. A group of committed change agents in that community found a way to pair up with some folks working in the private sector, and they said we can use our local food system as an asset here.
Instead of having some of the indignities put upon local residents as they accessed food programs, they said we're going to turn this into a community builder, and they changed the story. They are feeding more families, involving more young people, and learning new skills in food preparation. They are involved in gardens. You name it.
You ask the question what will really make them successful, and it's when they can scale their idea to other places, which they are trying to do in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia; in Perth, Ontario; and in Winnipeg. At that point in time, like other enterprises, they need access to capital. Should there be a fund focused on that particular outcome, a limited partnership, sadly we can't invest in it.
There's a way to link the success we would hope to see around community food centres in Canada and their rollout with the desire for capital that would allow them to scale, and the barriers we experience in supporting them.