MP wants one-year delay of Nutrition North

Yvon Lévesque, the Bloc Québécois MP for the federal riding that includes Nunavik, wants the House of Commons standing committee on northern development to recommend a one-year delay in the implementation of Nutrition North Canada.

Lévesque, who represents Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou, defended the motion by saying most witnesses who appeared before the committee to comment on the new food subsidy scheme found themselves in an information vacuum about how the new program will work.

“We know of the problems faced by the northern regions, in terms of infrastructure, in meeting the requirements of the new program…,” Lévesque said.

Conservative MPs on the committee responded by saying it’s too late to delay Nutrition North, since it’s already partly implemented.

“I can’t see how we can go back. Canada Post is already transitioning out… We’re too far down the road to change this and stop it in mid-track. I don’t think Canada Post would be ready to go backwards,” said LaVar Payne, the Conservative MP for Medicine Hat.

Liberal and New Democrat MPs straddled the fence on the issue, saying they agree with the spirit of Lévesque’s motion but want the committee to finish hearing from witnesses before they vote on recommendations.

“If Monsieur Lévesque’s motion could be held in abeyance until we bring the officials back in front of us and get these questions answered, I think [that] would be a better time to deal with Mr. Lévesque’s motion. Because he does have a point…” said Dennis Bevington, the NDP member for the Northwest Territories.

After a suggestion from Simcoe North MP Bruce Stanton, who chairs the committee, members agreed to postpone consideration of Lévesque’s motion until Dec. 13, when the committee meets to discuss their draft report on Nutrition North Canada.

Meanwhile, on Dec. 1. the federal government released the subsidy rates that the Nutrition North program will apply to eligible nutritious foods shipped by air to northern communities after April 1, 2011.

INAC officials have structured the system so that retailers and other users in more remote, higher-cost communities get the biggest subsidies.

At the same time, foods deemed by Health Canada to be most nutritious, such as fresh meat, milk and eggs — will get a higher level of subsidy, Level 1, than foods deemed to be less nutritious, such as crackers and pilot biscuits, which receive a Level 2 subsidy.

Foods and other goods deemed to have little or no nutritional value will not be subsidized.

In Grise Fiord, the Arctic’s highest cost community, the retailer there will get a subsidy of $11.30 per kilogram for shipping Level 1 items by air freight.

In lower-cost Iqaluit, retailers may apply for a subsidy of $1.80 per kilogram for Level 1 items.

In Kuujjuaq, retailers qualify for Level 1 subsidy of $1.90 per kilogram, and in Puvirnituq, retailers will get a subsidy of $3.20 per kilogram.

INAC says the new rates may be revised and updated before or after April 1, 2011, the start-up date for the program.

Under Nutrition North Canada, the federal government will replace its longstanding food mail program with a new scheme under which northern retailers and others receive a direct air cargo subsidy for eligible nutritional foods.

Users of the program may buy such items from any location in southern Canada and choose any available airline to ship their food.

Previously Val-Or, which lies within Lévesque’s riding, was a staging point for food mail sent north.