Louisbourg couple needs zoning change to sell homegrown produce

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic raised issues about food insecurity, Ivory and Dave Neal were looking to have their residential property rezoned for agricultural usage.

The Louisbourg, N.S., couple wants to sell excess produce from their garden, but municipal regulations don't allow it.

The Neals moved to Louisbourg from Ontario three years ago with plans to raise their two children and a vegetable garden.

"We moved here to try and have a little farm for us and our kids and when we got here, we realized that there was a market for the greens, that people wanted local produce and it wasn't available," Ivory said.

That's when the couple began selling extra produce from their garden to local restaurants. Area residents also stopped by the house to buy vegetables and the Neals began selling at the local farmers market.

"Greens, especially lettuces, here in town, we cannot keep it once it's growing," Ivory said. "It sells out every market. We are providing to the restaurants daily. They go through pounds of it a day."

Business, but not agriculture

Their home is on a short residential street with about half a dozen other homes, some unoccupied for at least part of the year, and it backs onto Louisbourg Harbour.

Their lot is about 1.4 hectares and the garden currently takes up about 400 square metres, said Ivory. If they expand as planned, the garden space would double.

The couple's residential property is in a zone that allows small home-based businesses, but not agriculture.

"We are allowed to make salsa, but we are not allowed to grow the vegetables for the salsa without this zoning change," Ivory said.

Someone complained to Cape Breton Regional Municipality about the Neals selling their produce. Now they have to stop selling or have the zoning changed.

Ivory said she understands how people can be concerned about a significant change in land use in their neighbourhood, but she said the garden operation is quite small.

"I guess if you had a major farm operation moving in next door, that could absolutely worry people, but what we're doing is very small scale and it's gardening."

Amanda McDougall, who represents the area on CBRM council, supports the couple's rezoning request.

McDougall said she has received overwhelming support from people in the district.

In addition, academics and local organizations have said locally grown food can help address food insecurity and poverty in Cape Breton, she said.

"These are the things that should be no-brainers," she said. "This is not going to be … Sobeys, where people are lined up out the door trying to buy all their groceries for a week."

Supply chains threatened

Leigh Potvin, a professor at Cape Breton University specializing in food security issues and also a member of the Island Food Network, said she could not comment on the rezoning application.

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has threatened supply chains and put a spotlight on the need for increased local agriculture, she said.

"Anything that people can do within their local communities to serve the local food systems or food-chain needs that people have is beneficial," Potvin said.

CBRM council is scheduled to hear the rezoning request later today.