Producing food in Yellowknife is important for building our community’s resilience to climate impacts and reducing our emissions.
Locally grown food helps limit the effects that transportation or infrastructure disruptions could have on Yellowknife’s food supply while increasing food security. It also helps reduce the emissions produced by transporting food to our community.
Community gardens 
The Yellowknife Community Garden Collective is a volunteer-run NGO that operates six community gardens and one community orchard in Yellowknife. Individuals can apply for a garden plot and tend to their plot throughout the growing season. 25% of produce is donated to local organisations that serve individuals in need.
Contact the Yellowknife Community Garden Collective directly for all inquiries related to the community gardens.
Farmers market
The Yellowknife Farmers Market is coordinated by a group of community volunteers. Please contact the organizers directly for all inquiries related to the Farmers Market, including requests to sell goods or set up a booth.
The Farmers Market features:
- home-made, home-grown, locally harvested products;
- kids craft area;
- musical entertainment; and
- plenty of space for family picnics.
When?
- Tuesday evenings 5:15-7:15 p.m.
- June to mid-September
Where?
Somba K'e Civic Plaza (downtown in front of City Hall off 49 Avenue and 53 Street)
Contact information
Email the Yellowknife Farmers Market
Yellowknife Farmers Market website or Yellowknife Farmers Market Facebook page
Tips for gardening at home
Growing your own food is a great way to lower your food costs, learn a new skill, and to connect to the environment around you while reducing your emissions.
To get started, the Yellowknife Community Garden Collective provides some tips for growing food in Yellowknife and productivity suggestions.
More information on what to grow and other gardening tips can be found in the GNWT’s Northern Lights Gardening Manual and on Ecology North’s local food resources page.
Food and urban agriculture strategy
In 2015, City Council adopted a Yellowknife Food Charter.
And in August 2018, Urban Food Strategies was awarded the contract to create a Food and Urban Agriculture Strategy for Yellowknife.
On May 6, 2019 the City's Governance and Priorities Committee heard a presentation from Janine de la Salle, a representative from Urban Food Strategies regarding the Agriculture Strategy (GROW).
In May 2019, Council adopted for information the Yellowknife Food and Agriculture Strategy (GROW) and directed Administration to draft a response to GROW and report back to Council.
Grow: Yellowknife Food & Agriculture Opportunities Analysis
In January 2021, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the City of Yellowknife and Wilfrid Laurier University to fulfill a six month Mitacs research grant titled: Identifying Opportunities and Barriers for Local Food Infrastructure in Yellowknife.
In March 22, 2021, GROW presented the Implementation Plan to the Governance and Priorities Committee.
Food Hub report
The City of Yellowknife and Wilfrid Laurier University partnered to conduct research on the opportunities and barriers of local food infrastructure within Yellowknife. The ‘Yellowknife Food Infrastructure Study Final Report’ and the Yellowknife food asset map, a comprehensive list of all the food assets in the community, were released in December 2021.
This project was made possible through funding received from Mitacs, a not-for-profit organization that supports industrial and social innovation in Canada, and funding supplied by the City.
If you would like to know more about this research and its findings, reach out to Jennifer Temmer, at jtemmer@wlu.ca.