image: Fermented foods may be as good for your gut health as they are for your palate. A new Canadian Fermented Foods Initiative is connecting health researchers with consumers and the food industry.
Credit: Credit: St. Joseph's Health Care London
London (Ont.) – A one-stop network, the first of its kind in North America, has begun sharing easily digested research, recipes and other resources about the health benefits of fermented foods.
The new Canadian Fermented Foods Initiative (CFFI) launches officially on Nov. 17 with a gathering of research and industry experts from across the country and Europe.
The collaboration helps consumers, researchers, health professionals and food industry share trusted, science-based expertise and information about fermented foods.
Funded by the Weston Family Foundation, the initiative is led by Jeremy Burton, PhD, who heads of one of Canada’s largest microbiome research programs and is Interim Vice President Research at St. Joseph’s Health Care London and Lawson Research Institute. His research leadership is joined by Raylene Reimer, PhD, professor of nutrition at the University of Calgary; and University of Alberta professor Ben Willing, PhD, former Canada Research Chair in Microbiology of Nutrigenomics.
Fermented foods such as sourdough bread, sauerkraut, kimchi and kombucha offer more than just good taste and an economical way to preserve food, Burton says. Large, population-based studies show people who eat fermented foods are generally healthier, with fewer digestive issues and lower risk of chronic diseases.
“How exactly does that work – and why? Well, that’s the big question we’re trying to solve,” Burton says. “One day, I believe, ‘ferment-ceuticals’ will be engrained in our diets and our health vocabulary.”
St. Joseph's is a leader in the field. A paper authored by the team and published this week in Advances in Nutrition represents the most comprehensive synthesis to date of research on fermented foods and human health.
Connor Flynn, a London, Ont., chef, master food preserver and high school teacher whose video recipes are included in the CFFI website, adds, “Fermenting foods is an old practice that’s never fallen out of flavour, but has sometimes fallen out of favour to North Americans. Now it has become popular again.”
To learn more about the CFFI, including fermented food recipes, head to fermentedfoods.ca.
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To arrange interviews with CFFI project lead Jeremy Burton and chef Connor Flynn, who are available Friday Nov. 14 from 7 am – 8 am ET and Nov. 14 from 1 – 4 pm ET, contact:
Deb (Flaherty) Van Brenk, Communication Consultant
St. Joseph’s Health Care London
deb.flaherty@sjhc.london.on.ca
About St. Joseph’s Health Care London
Renowned for compassionate care, St. Joseph’s Health Care London is a leading academic health care centre in Canada dedicated to helping people live to their fullest by minimizing the effects of injury, disease and disability through excellence in care, teaching and research. Through Lawson Research Institute, our innovation arm, and with collaborative engagement with other health and academic partners, St. Joseph’s has become an international leader in the areas of: chronic disease management; medical imaging; specialized mental health care; rehabilitation and specialized geriatrics; and surgery. St. Joseph’s operates through a wide range of hospital, clinic and long-term and community-based settings, including: St. Joseph’s Hospital; Parkwood Institute; Mount Hope Centre for Long Term Care; and the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care.
Journal
Advances in Nutrition
Method of Research
Literature review
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
Current Research in Fermented Foods: Bridging Tradition and Science
Article Publication Date
11-Nov-2025