I know news in general is not a pleasant thing—many people I know say they listen to it much less than they used to. I think that is why reality shows are so popular. Ironically, they have little to do with reality in most cases. But I believe we need to be aware of what is happening in our world.

Don’t worry, I’m not talking about politics. This is a food column, remember. I know food isn’t often a top news story, although the rising cost of it has been featured. Here are a few headlines for you:

• Food insecurity (the number of people who cannot afford to eat good food consistently) has gone up again. Did you know it has been on the rise since 2007?

• Despite rising prices, our tendency in Canada to shop local has risen,and we are willing to spend more to do it (53% said $5 more, another 33% said $10 more)

• On average, 25% of Canadians eat out........

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