This holiday season, close to 1,600 families (approximately 9,500 people) across nine regions in Canada enjoyed a taste of Indigenous cooking – and a warm sense of community – thanks to the Indigenous Culinary of Associated Nations (ICAN) first Indigenous Feast Box fundraiser. Spearheaded by executive chef and ICAN board member Christa Bruneau-Guenther, owner of Feast Café Bistro from the Peguis First Nation, the concept came to life after a successful distribution of summer meal kits from her restaurant in Winnipeg.

After Covid-19 forced the cancellation of ICAN’s planned summer schedule of Taste of the Nations events, the organization pivoted and redirected their efforts – and $30,000 of funding – towards the Indigenous Feast Boxes designed to share the diverse tastes and recipes of Indigenous cuisine across Canada. ICAN enlisted the help of top Indigenous chefs in Winnipeg, Vancouver, Toronto, Quebec, Edmonton, Saskatoon and Iqaluit.

“As the effects of COVID-19 continue to devastate the Indigenous culinary industry, this campaign aimed not only to help Indigenous families in need but also help secure jobs and get those employees in participating restaurants and establishments back to work,” said Bruneau-Guenther. “Many businesses had to close their doors, and this was a lifeline for operations like ours that employ 12 staff, all of whom are Indigenous and rely on their jobs for their livelihood. The reaction to the campaign was overwhelming and we are so grateful for the support of all those who contributed. Of note, we received a sizeable donation from the Canada Employment and Immigration Union (CEIU) in the amount of $10,000 by their First Nations / Inuit / Metis representatives to the National Human Rights & Race Relations (HRRR) committee when they decided to direct their charitable funds last year to our campaign. We’re so grateful for their donation and thrilled the word got out via the media and to contributors who saw this as the holiday gift that gives back.”

“Indigenous culinary is one of the key elements that drives Indigenous tourism and what visitors look for when experiencing a place.” said Keith Henry, Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) President and CEO. As the country’s national Indigenous tourism organization, it was imperative that ITAC help grow the community and lay the foundation for a collective like ICAN, which is committed to sharing genuine Indigenous food experiences with the country,” “It is with pride that we, as its parent organization, were able to provide the necessary funding to support ICAN’s initiatives and enable it to realize its mission and mandate with campaigns such as the Indigenous Feast Boxes.”

Each participating region worked with a local chef who curated the boxes with their own creative flair and showcased elements of their culinary heritage in the recipes. The chefs also handpicked local Indigenous community groups to distribute Feast Boxes to those most in need. Promoted through GoFundMe, a $50.00 donation went towards feeding families of up to six people with one Feast Box. Families received the boxes complete with recipes, cooking instructions and an explanation of the significance of the ingredients chosen reflecting the unique Culture and personality of each chef.

In Winnipeg, the Feast Cafe Bistro boxes contained local turkey, wild rice, corn, beans, all of the seasonings, vegetables, bison, fruit and Arctic char from Nunavut, which was sourced from a non-profit in Winnipeg as well as a bannock-mix-in-a-bag that families could make at home.

In Toronto, Chef Joseph Shawana of ddcx Indigenous Kitchen and Catering, with the support of Centennial College, prepared meals based on his Odawa, part of the Three Fires Confederacy heritage. His Feast Boxes included a mushroom, sweet potato and bean soup as well as roasted acorn squash, and a wild rice and berry salad.

In Edmonton, Chef Scott Iserhoff, a Mushkego Cree from the Attawapiskat First Nation, created roasted turkey with lemon thyme gravy, roasted garlic potato mash, honey and thyme-glazed roasted carrots, traditional bannock with canned wild blueberries. “This campaign has sparked passion within the community to help and had a big ripple effect,” said chef Scott. “We were able to do a second run in January of another 135 Feast Boxes, as our partnering agency IKWC generously gave us a donation to fulfill more referrals. In turn, ATB bank has offered us to do another small run in the city through their donation as well that was completed this winter. We are thankful to ICAN for reaching out to us and initiating this beautiful campaign.”

In Saskatoon, the Wanuskewin Heritage Park culinary team led by Chef Jenni Lessard created a fully cooked, heat-from-frozen, roast turkey dinner including bannock and wild rice stuffing, sage pan gravy, classic mashed potatoes, low bush cranberry and Saskatoon berry sauce, roast carrots glazed with honey and thyme, and spice cookies made with squash raised from chef’s garden last summer.

“It was a lot of work, but I liked how it kept us busy and I was glad to be part of it all,” said Wanuskewin Culinary team member Julie Bear, member of Shoal Lake Cree Nation, Saskatchewan.  “Supporting our local food producers in the creation of this meal was very important to us as a team,” said chef Jenni Lessard. “It’s so special that the low bush cranberries purchased from Indigenous people in Northern Saskatchewan ended up on the holiday table of students and their families in Saskatoon.”

On social media, the Maniwake Native Friendship Centre in west Quebec posted their thanks for the donations from Chef Marie-Cecile Nottaway: “Spreading the Spirit of the Holidays!!! Migwetch to Wawatay Catering and her team for the delicious breakfast brunch donations, which included local awazibi. The families truly appreciate your generosity.”

In Vancouver, the team at Salmon n Bannock prepared meals in December and early January. These meals featured an open-faced hot bison sandwich on bannock with vegetables, coleslaw, a bannock bread pudding, hearty bannock taco, Sockeye salmon and potato casserole with vegetables, plus a bannock dessert.

Chef Paul Natrall of Mr. Bannock fame cooked up a storm at the Dudes Club in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver, serving up a very special Winter Solstice celebration for local Indigenous men, of seasoned and roasted duck, wild rice pilaf, squash and a bannock dessert.

In Quebec City, Chef Maxime Lizotte receive a generous donation of moose meat which he transformed into a family comfort food-style menu featuring moose ragut for community members in Wendake.

“The food insecurity of our Indigenous communities across the country is rising and we wanted to do our part to help those affected, not only by the pandemic, but throughout a season that is often a struggle for many families,” said chef Joseph Shawana, ICAN Board Chair. “In addition to feeding community members, it was our goal to use this opportunity to help further ICAN’s mission of educating Canadians about Indigenous cuisine, and how widespread and diverse our food is. The awareness of the campaign has put a spotlight not only on food insecurity but also on the need to incorporate more Indigenous meals in restaurants. With widespread interest in the campaign, we’ve heard from numerous Indigenous chefs and institutions such as hospitals and other organizations seeking to learn about ways to include Indigenous foods and recipes into their menus in order to deliver healthy local dishes to their communities.”

Participating chefs and community organizations:

WINNIPEG

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Feast Cafe Bistro team led by owner/chef Christa Bruneau-Guenther

Distributed by:

Ka Ni Kanichihk 

Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata 

Indigenous Family Centre

North Point Douglas Women’s Centre 
 

TORONTO

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Indigenous Kitchen and Catering team led by chef Joseph Shawana with the support of Centennial College

Community organizations:

Native Child and Family Services of Toronto

Council Fire
 

QUÉBEC

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Wawatay Catering led by chef Marie-Cecile (Cezin) Nottaway 

Community organizations:

Maniwake Native Friendship Centre

Kitigan Zibi Algonquin First Nation in Rapid Lake 

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Wigwam Catering led by chef Maxime Lizotte 

Community organizations:

Comptoir Agoshin in Wendake
 

EDMONTON

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Pei Pei Chei Ow Catering led by chef Scott Iserhoff

Community organizations:

Indigenous Knowledge and Wisdom Centre
 

VANCOUVER

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Mr. Bannock Catering led by chef Paul Natrall 

Community organizations:

Dude’s Club

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Salmon ‘n Bannock Restaurant team led by owner Inez Cook

Community organizations:

Helping Spirit Lodge Society
 

SASKATOON

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

Wanuskewin Heritage Park culinary team under the direction of chef Jenni Lessard

Community organizations:

Saskatoon Public School Foundation Cheer Crates Program
 

IQALUIT

Partner Restaurant/Chef:

sijjakkut inc. led by chef Sheila Flaherty and will work with her community to support a culinary program.

Accountability & Transparency

• GoFundMe charged 2.9% per transaction plus $0.30 per donation.
• Funds were disbursed from a central pool on a proportional basis across the country, after evaluation by an adjudication team.
• Administration fees were covered separately by ICAN so that all funds raised went directly to food, labour and distribution costs to feed as many people and families as possible.