YFNED Indigenous Kitchen Hub

Food is Culture.  

Food is Community. 

Food is Security. 

Food is Sustainability.  

Food is Reconciliation. 

Thanks to Phase 2 of the Northern Food Innovation Challenge, we are working with a design team of engineers, architects and kitchen specialists to envision not just a better way of feeding all our Indigenous kids, but creating a space that can be used to educate, gather and come together over local food. Our Indigenous Kitchen Hub – will be a central space not just for the YFNED nutrition program but for Indigenous people in the Yukon.

It will be where we make school meals for all Indigenous Whitehorse-based students. A space to process harvested meat and foraged foods. Needed capacity for refrigeration, freezing, dry storage, meal preparation, cleaning of reusable packaging, and staff room.

It’s not just a working kitchen, but an instructional kitchen with a learning environment and outdoor spaces for gathering and gardening.

We are lucky to have cleared the first hurdle of finding space for this facility. A beautiful spot on the banks of the historic Yukon River in Whitehorse on the traditional territories of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta'an Kwäch'än Council. As part of a larger build with the Council of Yukon First Nations (CYFN) with the kitchen hub expected to take over the entire main floor of the building.

It will be the foundation of the building upon which all other CYFN and YFNED services, are provided.

Having the support of all 14 Yukon First Nations and the CYFN leadership shows the community importance of this project moving forward.

This facility can reverse the loss of culture and tradition that Indigenous people have experienced - to build generational knowledge around food harvesting and processing. It strengthens our ability to provide for Yukon First Nations families dealing with increasing food insecurity. It enables us to increase local food usage and support Yukon farmers in our programming by having proper facilities to store and prepare ingredients.  It will transform how traditional food can be a part of our current world, honouring Yukon First Nations and Dän k’e - Our Way, while also providing inspiration for reconciliation efforts across the country.  

And we are looking for people to join us on this journey.

We have the designs but we are still working through the innovations.

We have the dreams but we are still looking for partners to help fund a sustainable build – to sustain future generations of Indigenous people in the Yukon.