Nutrition North external review due Tuesday, northern affairs minister says
Federal government announced look into food subsidy program’s effectiveness in October 2024, in response to criticisms
Former Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Aluki Kotierk, seen speaking in January 2024, is working on an external review of Nutrition North. The review is expected to be finished March 31, federal Northern and Arctic Affairs Minister Rebecca Chartrand said last week. (File photo by Jeff Pelletier)
An external review of Nutrition North is expected at the Department of Northern and Arctic Affairs this week.
Rebecca Chartrand, the federal department’s minister, provided the update Thursday during a news conference where she outlined funding for a number of Indigenous-led projects tackling food security.
“We’re taking a number of steps to gather data that we will amalgamate at the end,” Chartrand said in reference to the review.
She added the deadline for her department to receive the report is March 31.
Former northern affairs minister Dan Vandal announced the external review of Nutrition North, a food subsidy program meant to address the high cost of food in remote northern communities, in October 2024.
The program, created in 2011, has received criticism that subsidies paid out to northern retailers are not leading to lower food costs.
“We need to do our due diligence in making sure that every single penny of the retail subsidy is going to northerners,” Vandal said when he announced the review.
Former Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. president Aluki Kotierk was appointed in February 2025 to lead the review. Nunatsiaq News tried to reach Kotierk for an update on her progress but did not receive a response.
The external review was billed as a chance to allow northerners to provide input for improvements in the program, Kotierk said at the time.
There is still a lot of work to be done after the report is received, Erika Lashbrook Knutson, Chartrand’s press secretary said Friday. The minister is looking forward to reviewing the reports findings, but could not say when or if details would be made public, Lashbrook Knutson said.
“Food is a colonial construct.”
Grab your hats boys and girls ! Not much won’t happen just another story.
Shocking😂
“but could not say when or if details would be made public”
Its tax payer funded, why would it not be made public, unless this is a preemptive comment made incase the findings were that there’s a total lack of government oversight / incompetence leading to the misuse of nutritions north money by private companies and the gov’t wont want to share the details of their incompetence.
Normally I would be excited for this review but knowing who leads it and how she has been invisible while this process was supposed to happen I do not have much faith in a meaningful review. When this is so important that can really make a positive impact on lowering the cost of food up here it was really unfortunate they had to appoint someone that was never capable of doing such work, it will be interesting to see what comes of this review but I am not holding my breath.
give example how invisible the person is leading the review, and don’t say look at what she’s done, give concrete examples.
How about no public consultations, no public information sessions, not even online surveys or questions, can you tell me how visible she ways? And don’t tell me she was out there consulting with business, corporations and or individuals because we did not see or hear about any of that, please do tell us how she conducted this review, we will wait.
Free money to be had….
That invisible report is late and not on time, for us that had to work with NTI while she was President knew this was coming, she does not produce or get anything done, her executive staff is still at NTI unfortunately and NTI sitting on nearly a billion dollars of new funding is not producing either.
How do you support something like that?
No comment NTI also on the land use plan, 2 and a half years later NTI does not have their review done of the Nunavut land use plan, same executive staff same results.
This is why it’s so important to pick, vote for people that are competent to based on their feelings but on how productive they have been.
Not a surprise the person heading up the review couldn’t be reached.
I wonder why she got her appointment to the role.
too bad you were not appointed
She was appointed by Minister Anandasangaree under during the Trudeau era, a time driven by optics, vibes and feels…
Totally agree, no community visits no consultations with business people that we heard of, the review people will say more country food. But wait and see,it could make us all happy.
Itemized the cost coming to Nunavut. Otherwise it’s just a complex report advantage to retailers. I.E. A case of pop retailers buys from bottler (whole seller) 12 case cost him $2.75. Ship it Arviat, now cost $23.00 at the till, how? what costs did he incurred to justify the 23? Say he sales 3000 cases per month. $23,000/month X 12 + $270,000. Make it so when we read it and understand the Nunavut food pricing system.
Northern and ACL both act as the wholesaler to the store and this is there the markup happens. Then the can tell the government look we paid this for the goods and we have to mark it up.
Pop is a bad example because pop should be high as it is not un the program and the stores should take as much profit on pop to give essentials a more reasonable price.
I have always said you need to stop looking at who is doing it wrong (ACl and NWC) and look at who is doing right and ask how. How does baffin canners, Arctic Fresh, Northern shopper carve out a piece of the big guys business.
Also your money has power spend it in places that offer you a fair price. In Iqaluit use Amazon. Get a credit card with a $500 limit and your staples now come at southern prices
Monopoly Airlines now, monopoly ACL monopoly NWC, monopoly hotels ACL, ACL record profits, NWC shares have increased 250 percent since the new Nutrition program handed to them and ACL. Aw come on let them make a profit, it’s all federal handouts. And look who is reviewing Nutrition North, no business back ground, people need more country food.
There’s not enough market to keep the prices down, you the cost of shipping alone is high, if you have a magic solution to shipping cost and increasing market in Nunavut please share.
go ahead blame the big bad airlines but these 2 companies both with stakes in sealift companies fly diapers and couches all the time because the rate is better than shipping it on their own boats.
It is not about market size and shipping costs. It is about how they have decided to screw their customers. Their predatory financial division is another conversations. Companies exist to make money for their shareholders but there should be some social conscious as well.
the real answer is to put everyone on the same playing field like the food mail program did. You just move the subsidy from the airline where everyone got the same rate to retailers and it is not working
Dear mont, another smart retail person,
Last time in wpg 12 pack of Pepsi 6.50 plus calmair deeply discounted frt rate check their website at least 1.00 a lb so it cost him 18.00 case to get it there and sky rocket power bills,fuel bills,20 hr minimum wage if you can find people to show up, but you should step open open a store and make lots and lots of money. Keyboard warrior and trolls unite.
!00%, good point to make. But, let’s not stop there.
Capital costs are the highest in the country.
Shrinkage (spoilage/theft) would be the highest in the country too.
Utility costs are off the charts.
Then there is insurance. Insurance in the north has been rising and really hurting everyone. The arson problem Nunavut has would make this hurt much worse in Nunavut.
There is way more going on here than shipping costs.
“We need to do our due diligence in making sure that every single penny of the retail subsidy is going to northerners,” Vandal said when he announced the review.”
That is an ironic statement in several respects. First nearly 70% of all government spending is wasted. Most of the rest is political. Second, probably the Nutrition North program administered by the retailers is the only part of spending that is honest and effective.