In Labrador, ineffective subsidies for indigestible grocery prices

Ottawa announced Friday an external review of the Nutrition North Canada (NNC) subsidy program, which has been widely criticized and deemed ineffective in keeping food prices affordable in northern Labrador.

This external review will be led by a special ministerial representative who will be independent of the federal public service, according to Ottawa.

This representative will have to meet the stakeholders to evaluate the effectiveness of the NNC program and make recommendations on how to improve it. He will also have to write a report which will be written in 2026.

A program deemed ineffective

Nunavut NDP MP Lori Idlout is fighting in the House of Commons for an overhaul of the Nutrition North Canada (NNC) subsidy program, which aims to offset transportation costs to remote Indigenous communities to reduce food prices healthy.

The subsidies appear to be particularly ineffective in Nain, Newfoundland and Labrador’s northernmost village, where food prices have more than doubled since the program’s launch and are now among the highest in the country.

In a recent interview, M^me Idlout had a clear message for Nain residents struggling to afford food: Submit your complaints directly to the Minister of Northern Affairsshe said, referring to Dan Vandal. Obviously complaining to the Northern stores doesn’t work.

Nain has a population of approximately 1,200 and is one of five fly-in communities in Nunatsiavut, the Inuit region along Labrador’s northern coast.

Government figures show the price of a week’s worth of healthy food to feed a family of four increased by almost 62% in Nain between 2021 and 2011, when the program launched. This is the largest increase among reporting communities eligible for grants.

In 2021, the cost of a week’s worth of healthy food for four people in Nain was $503, which is also the highest among reporting communities.

Photos on social media show the local Northern Store charges $7.97 for cabbage and $21.49 for a 1.42 liter bottle of cooking oil – prices that Nain resident Rosie Harris said described as inhuman. The prices, Ms. Harris lamented, are forcing families to go hungry.

Lynn Blackwood, manager of food security programs for the Inuit government of Nunatsiavut in northern Labrador, said the program is “clearly” not working and that subsidy rates for Nain need to be adjusted.

Open in full screen mode

The federal government is currently reviewing the program, and officials are scheduled to visit Nain and Rigolet, Newfoundland and Labrador, early next year to speak with elders and community members about the cost of food . But I don’t know when this review will be carried out.specified M^me Blackwood. I think we need to act now.

Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, which represents approximately 70,000 Inuit in Canada, recommended an overhaul of the program NNC in 2021, as part of its food security strategy for Inuit Nunangat, which is the Inuit region stretching from Yukon to Labrador.

Cost increases multiplied by distance

A statement from the Ministry of Northern Affairs said rising food costs across the country and a 30 per cent increase in fuel and transport costs had helped drive up food prices in Nain.

Food can be delivered by boat in the warmer months or by air in the winter, which is much more expensive.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people have been shopping more than usual at the city’s two stores. That meant stores’ reserves of items shipped by sea ran out more quickly, forcing retailers to resort to costly air freight sooner, said Pascal Laplante, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Northern Affairs.

[Nutrition Nord Canada] was not created to solve food security alonerecalled a previous email from the ministry. well that NNC has increased access and reduced costs of food and everyday essentials in eligible communities, poverty and the high cost of living in the North are the main drivers of food insecurity.

This response gives M^me Blackwood feels that the department is trying to reject responsibilitybut she hopes things can change. I’m really happy that they’re actually coming into the community and getting a sense of what’s going on.she said.

Yvonne Jones, Liberal MP from Labrador, did not respond to an interview request.