About Us
According to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada's report entitled, Canadian Food Trends to 2020, the aging population is the number one trend to focus on in the next decade. It predicts that by 2020, nearly one in five Canadians will be over the age of 65 for a projected total of 6.5 million senior citizens. The growing number of older adults presents an opportunity for Ontario's agriculture and agri-food sectors to address the challenges associated with aging.
Research and innovation is needed to evaluate nutritional and sensory needs of older adults, while exploring agri-food technologies such as processing, packaging and preparation to meet those needs. There is also opportunity for improved nutritional management of health issues associated with aging, including malnutrition, cognitive degeneration, and chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease and cancer.
The Agri-food for Healthy Aging (A-HA) initiative is a collaborative research group created through the efforts of the Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging (RIA), University of Waterloo, University of Guelph, and MaRS Landing. A-HA's core researchers hold expertise in the areas of applied nutrition & dietetics, nutritional sciences, food science, and human health (i.e. aging population).
By exploring linkages between agriculture, food, nutrition and human health, A-HA aims to realize innovative opportunities for Ontario's agri-food and health sectors to improve health and well-being of the province's older adults.