Kotierk to head independent review of Nutrition North
Ottawa taps former NTI president to evaluate effectiveness of subsidy program that aims to make essential foods affordable to northerners
Aluki Kotierk, the former president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., speaking in a January 2024 file photo, is the federal government’s choice to head up a review of the Nutrition North Canada food subsidy program. Northern Affairs Minister Gary Anandasangaree announced Kotierk’s appointment as the minister’s special representative Tuesday in Ottawa. (File photo by Jeff Pelletier)
The federal government has turned to Inuk leader Aluki Kotierk, the former president of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., to lead a review of its Nutrition North Canada food subsidy program.
Northern Affairs Minister Gary Anandasangaree announced Kotierk’s appointment as the minister’s special representative Tuesday in Ottawa.
The review will give northerners the chance to have input on lasting improvements to Nutrition North, Kotierk said.
“Northerners have the knowledge and experience to determine what works best for their communities,” she said in a news release issued after the announcement.
Her new position is independent of the federal public service, whose bureaucrats manage the federal subsidy program that uses government funding to lower the relatively high market prices for food in the North.
Kotierk will report directly to Anandasangaree, a news release issued after the announcement said.
Her mandate will be to meet with national and regional Indigenous organizations, retailers, transportation providers and others involved in ensuring the supply of food in the North.
The purpose of her review is to evaluate Nutrition North’s effectiveness.
“We are delivering on our commitment to improve access to healthy and affordable food for all northerners,” Anandasangaree said in the news release.
Last October, then minister of northern affairs Dan Vandal said the federal Liberal government would conduct a review of the program in the face of criticism that the money the government puts into the subsidy program isn’t used properly.
Vandal said a special representative would be appointed early in 2025.
Ottawa created Nutrition North in 2011 in a bid to make essential foods more affordable and more accessible to people who live in 124 isolated northern communities, including all 25 municipalities in Nunavut and 14 in Nunavik.
Over the years, there have been complaints that retailers take the government’s subsidy but don’t pass along the full savings to their northern customers.
The NDP, including Nunavut MP Lori Idlout, have said the government should give the money directly to northerners — instead of to retailers — to ensure the full subsidy amount reaches the people it’s intended to help.
On Wednesday, Idlout said in a written statement that Kotierk’s work must be “swift with strong actions” to ensure the program helps to alleviate poverty.
Idlout said Kotierk is well respected, adding she wished her the best in “getting to the bottom of how badly the Liberals have mismanaged” Nutrition North.
Kotierk, who is originally from Igloolik, had been president of NTI, the Inuit rights-holding organization in Nunavut, for eight years. She did not seek a third term in last December’s presidential election, clearing the way for Jeremy Tunraluk to succeed her.
Aluki is the right person to assess Nutrition North and make recommendations for improvement – if any are needed – provided she has extensive education and experience in biochemistry (nutrition), healthcare, accounting, retail business, education, and communication.
I always enjoy your erection of artificial barriers, and other distracting non-points. Indeed, it is unimaginable that one could do an analysis of nutrition north without a comprehensive background in “biochemistry” … a PhD at minimum, right?
I don’t need a ph d or whatever to know Northwest Company throws food brought up through Nutrition North to the dump.
lololololol
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I find it frustrating to see an important review like this slapped together in such a cavalier way with no regard for a merit based process that will lead to the best end product for the Nunavut taxpayer. Does the Federal Minister really think that just going to his Rolodex of recently unemployed Nunavut politicians is going to lead in the end to a comprehensive, thoughtful and helpful review of Nutrition North? Give me a break.
If the Feds were serious about this review they would have implemented a serious, merit based selection process. In other words, a competitive process that would have involved a request for substantive proposals on how the review would be conducted and methodologies to be used etc.. That’s how you go about getting the best result that might actually lead to positive change. You don’t get it by just asking around to see what former Nunavut politician is available and has some time on their hands to toil around with this.
This isn’t serious and, sadly, I will be most surprised to see anything useful coming out of this.
Optics, appearance, and symbolism are the guiding principles for this Liberal government. Perception is their reality.
Correction – this NDP/LIBERAL COALITION government
Must be an election coming. This NDP/Liberal coalition coalition is attempting to break us all financially before they leave.
Thanks, MIGA; without doubts you hit the nail – better than I did.
Without exception, anything that the current Liberal government has done in the past nine years has contributed to the decline of Canadian society. Any organizations, institutions or individuals associated with or who supported that government are complicit. That is precisely why Aluki was appointed to bask in an NN review. No knowledge of nutrition (lol, imagine doing an analysis of a nutrition program without having extensive knowledge of … nutrition); no knowledge of accounting or business or logistics (to assess a program whose fundamentals – other than nutrition – are grounded in accounting, retail business and logistics); no communication skills (to do an assessment that will gather information from a broad group of stakeholders including accountants, retail business owners, suppliers and manufacturers, health-care officials, educators, psychologists, and consumers)
Thanks again Kathy. Another interesting read.
But, but! Do you think the Liberals would consider that?
A liberal government who’s been in power for about a decade, hires a liberal politician to review a nutrition program few weeks before this government is toppled; what can go wrong with that?
Couldn’t they just hire a mystery shopper at the North Mart instead?
It wasn’t the Liberals who made the change to the NN Program to move away from subsidizing freight toward subsidizing the retailers. It was the conservatives when Leona was MP.
Aluki.
I hope you rack up more travel points on the tax payers dime as you’ll “have” to travel as video conference is too much for Northwestel.
recycled unemployed politician gets cushy Job to speak their language and force pre written reports to the gullible before election time.
There is your corrected headli e
Let me get this straight – the lady who was responsible for negotiating with and safeguarding our Inuit rights from the Federal government until 5 minutes ago is suddenly picked as a Minister’s Special Representative to examine a Federal Program that enriches retailers and gouges her constituency?
I’m glad that’s all cleared up now.
Aluki’s own daughter resigned from NNC. At no point in her tenure as NTI president, did Kotierk give attention to the NNC program as a key focal point. Has no experience or educational background within NNC.
Looks like one of the political favor appointments.
Nepotism at its finest.
Good to see it’s not just local towns in Nunavut that operate in Nepotism.
It’s also national. Who knew? (Shrug)
to be fair we are all connected and related here at some point. and then even closer there is a lot of nepitism because unfortunately Nunavut has a large divide between haves and have nots. and those that come from families that have done something unusually also end up with the ability to also do stuff.
No we’re not all connected. Period.
I know who my siblings and cuzzins are.
We aren’t related to every Tom, Dick and old Aunt Sara in Nunavut.
I notice that when Inuit I’ve never met start trying to say their related to our family when they have ulterior motives.
Common to hear…”We’re Inuit. You have to help me. My great, great grandmother and yours were cuzz a hundred years ago.”
In today’s world it’s every person for himself. Damn the torpedoes!! Full speed ahead!!
“Nunavut MP Lori Idlout, have said the government should give the money directly to northerners — instead of to retailers”
You could give some people a million dollars and they’d still be asking for food donations a month later. As the old saying goes, if you give a man a fish, he’ll be hungry tomorrow.
You’re a broken record…
Have you tried fishing?
I thought for sure they’d choose her for Senator but maybe they have other plans. this entire thing about nutrition north is such a joke. when retailers control the supply chain, the “reasonable” cost of groceries is whatever they want it to be.
The review of Nutrition North if done, will it see any light of day when, “Kotieike will report directly to Anandasangaree…” (Northern Affairs Minister)?
Interesting timing when it’s possible no election soon, in the fall or pushed far into 2016. At a time, Canada is going full speed ahead with tariffs on the USA. This is the most important issue now.
It’s not US tariffs that will make food prices skyrocket across Nunavut, it’s Canada’s own tariffs to the US. Canada intentionally making food more expensive in Canada, in Nunavut.
Where the heck are the Mayors, Inuit Org, GN ministers and MLA’s voices speaking out to no new Canadian tariffs on food?
Demanding the Liberal/NDP stop with the tariffs to the USA. We absolutely don’t have to suffer as we are told by the leaders we will.
Thanks, Mass Formation; itès always interesting and informative to read your thoughts
Nunavut mayors or Inuit orgs speaking out would be an absolute and complete waste of time.
For better or worse, the tariff matters are with the decision makers, of which mayors and NTI are not in any way at all.
Nice try at deferring the issue. Your comment is 10 years too late. The Liberals have had that long to “Fix” the problem and have done SFA. Bring Leona back anytime. I had a lot more confidence in her (and still do) than any of the politicians of Nunaut since.