NTI to ‘audit’ grocery prices as Jordan’s Principle funding pours in
With 24 out of 25 Nunavut communities administering voucher program, some concerns cost of food is rising
Sam Alagalak, secretary-treasurer of the Kivalliq Inuit Association, raises the question of rising grocery prices at the annual meeting of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. in October. (Photo by Arty Sarkisian)
Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. is looking into reports that northern grocers are jacking up prices in tandem with the influx of millions of dollars worth of Inuit Child First Initiative funding.
Every Nunavut community except Resolute Bay is administering a food voucher program this year that gives families $500 per month per child under 18 and an extra $250 per month per child under age four. The money can be spent on nutritious food and infant necessities.
The Inuit Child First Initiative is the Inuit equivalent of Jordan’s Principle — both offer federally administered programs dedicated to helping Indigenous children access support, such as education and medical supplies, food and baby products.
The food voucher program alone has led to an injection this year of $6.8 million into Naujaat and $5.4 million into Iqaluit, for example.
“It appears that retailers are taking full advantage of the extra money the Inuit have,” said Sam Alagalak, secretary-treasurer of the Kivalliq Inuit Association, in a question to Kilikvak Kabloona, CEO of Nunavut Tunngavik Inc., about the cost of groceries during the corporation’s annual meeting in October.
Kabloona said Statistics Canada doesn’t track the affordability of nutritious food specifically in Nunavut. This data would help determine any deficiencies in the programs, she said.
So NTI is planning to compile that data in an effort to support or reject this claim, in what Kabloona called an “audit.”
She didn’t provide a timeline for the work and NTI didn’t provide any details about the organization’s methods.
“There is a lot of discussion about retailers increasing prices with Nutrition North and Child First Initiative,” she said.
Aivilik MLA Solomon Malliki also raised the issue during this month’s legislature sitting.
“I am sure that I am not the only member of the legislative assembly who has heard concerns that major retailers operating in Nunavut have been increasing their prices to take advantage of introducing of this funding,” he said Nov. 5.
In his question to Community and Government Services Minister David Joanasie, Malliki asked for the number of complaints the consumer affairs unit of the department had received on the issue.
Joanasie said there were no complaints received, but encouraged Nunavummiut to send complaints to the department if they want to.
North West Company, which owns Northern and NorthMart locations across the Arctic, works to “offer great value to the customers who shop with us through this very important program,” said Darryl Martin, the company’s director of marketing and communications, in response to an inquiry by Nunatsiaq News about the concerns.
Martin did not specifically address the allegations.
He also noted that as a publicly traded company, it does not provide sales information besides what is contained in public releases.
A spokesperson for Arctic Co-operatives Ltd. did not respond to a request for comment.
Indigenous Kids Network of Canada also doesn’t have data on price changes in Nunavut since the voucher program began, said Emily Fudge, a service co-ordinator for the network.
“Keep in mind, Canada has experienced a cumulative inflation rate of 14.08 per cent over the past three years, which has contributed to rising costs nationwide,” she said.
Statistics Canada data released Tuesday shows that with inflation hitting two per cent in October, the price of groceries has gone up by 2.7 per cent compared with the same time period a year ago.
Since 2019, average grocery spending in Canada increased by 26 per cent, according to RBC Bank.
Well well, welcome to the rest of the world, I know prices are already high in the arctic, but it’s been climbing in the rest of the country as well. Remember when everyone used to buy as much as they can from YK? Even YK is getting pricey now.
What is the BENEFIT of this NTI CARD!?! What’s the USED with extreme HIGH costs of groceries in remote Northern communities, Electricity BILLs, FUEL, and Materials to maintain buildings. What is the benefit? Particularly with market or make-up groceries in retails!
Not enough privilege for you?
Oh!?! you mean the corporate greed’s that received bonuses $2 mil? more!?! to mark-up prices!?!
So NTI is planning to compile that data in an effort to support or reject this claim, in what Kabloona called an “audit.”
This should be pure comedy gold. Seriously, are they going to walk into the stores and demand to see their books? Who at NTI could even begin to understand the complexity of running a business with 8 or 9 figure annual sales? Even if they could prove that prices have gone up due to the introduction of federal funding they are still powerless to do anything about it.
These are performance artists, who trade in grievance, sanctimony and outrage. Substance eludes them as they chase empty spectacle.
Most appreciated, NTI this makes us proud.
Report the findings to appropriate governmentn agencies.
It’s appalling what the notorious northern store does and thinks they can get away with it
The purpose of a store is to extract the available cash from a community.
More money comes into the community.
The store has two choices.
It can bring more food and other goods into the community. This takes time and costs money.
Or, it can increase the prices of the food and other goods already in the community. This is faster, easier, and more profitable.
If you owned the store, which would you choose to do?
have the GN take over northmart. buy them out and run it themselves.
Why not try competing with them, if you think their margins are so high?
there is no competition. Co-op store just price match the Northern store, which i believe is illegal.
JP is funny. It is subsidizing already subsidized food. In other words, a handout stacked on top of another handout. “Please sir, can I have some more”. At least now people can spend their money on things that really matter, like smokes and card games, while JP pays for their kids food. Isn’t all this the complete opposite of self-determination?
It’s funny when people with superiority complex comment and show their true colors.
Hope Nti gives us $100 per post that’s the new rumour, if people knew how hard it is just to keep the doors open in these stores, how much abuse the workers take on a daily basis, the long hours worked while watching everyone else get long Xmas breaks and actual days off you would think different I’m sure, yes like every sector there are bad actors but they usually don’t last long, lots try to run stores most fail..Now we import like everyone else.
The Canadian dollar is now just above 70 cents due to the Lib/NDP coalition’s bad policy and overspending that you guys voted for. Stop looking at this at a micro level and look at the big picture, and ask yourselves where do we buy food from? Oh, the United States? Weak dollar = higher prices. Carbon tax = higher freight costs. I could go on. The government has no money. We either pay through taxes or inflation. There is nothing free.
Audit other programs if you can under NTI. Is this another distraction to another incentive that will come out. Increase the attendance rate for high school by giving each student 5 bucks a day scrap that it all went to piruvik.
Start with NNI 99% non-inuit business that are inuit own just because the president is inuit that is a loophole that doesn’t benefit inuit at all in fact it is usually taking advantage of inuit just so they can get contraxts
This might be a great time for NTI and RIAs start investing in grocery stores even with starting off with basic essentials so the pricing can be at bay and transparent.
So now NTI is going to be involved in JP??? NTI and the RIAs should have ran the JP program from Day 1 but no it got rammed down the throats of the Hamlets
“Garbage mitts” brand selling at local Northern store for $80.00, really??
TIME for a economic boom and get more Inuit on Pilot projects to open Groceries store in their community. reliance on Government and Northwest , COOP is crippling our growth. we are literally one of richest lands in Canada. we Hold more power then lead to believe. this whole “it cost alot to bring goods” is an old excuse that needs to go away.
pilot project can be a 5 year hand hold and promote more Inuit to open retail stores
also why doesnt every community have some sort processing plant? , our waters are rich but yet all our fishing is offloaded in greenland or newfoundland… NU should be sourcing sea food to Asian markets…
I wonder when social services will begin their clawbacks…this is income? For those on welfare
Just meet with the Hudson’s Bay executives… instead of bringing up a “friend” consultant to explore the price increases.. simple solution for a nunavut wide problem.
Nutrition North program needs to be audited also, Northwest company has been making a killing off of this program. Record profits since the start of this program.
I am curious about where NTI is going to find the staff to do the “audit”
They can’t find the staff to meet their responsibilities under the Language Act and communicate in Inuinnaqtun.
Gst cuts are already happening and a price for a good start milk was under $40 now its $42 without gst