Nutrition North to undergo external review
Federal government to appoint arm’s-length representative to follow the money, Vandal says
Dan Vandal, the federal minister of northern affairs, announced Friday measures to review the Nutrition North program. A ministerial special representative will be appointed early next year to launch the review. (Photo by Daron Letts)
The federal government vows to follow the money as part of an external review of a portion of its Nutrition North program.
The review was announced Friday by Dan Vandal, the federal minister of northern affairs.
“We need to do our due diligence in making sure that every single penny of the retail subsidy is going to northerners,” said Vandal, who spoke to Nunatsiaq News while in Iqaluit to attend the fifth annual Arctic and Northern Policy Framework Leadership Committee meeting.
“Why now? It’s been an issue that’s been public for a while now and there’s enough controversy — questions — about the retail subsidy portion,” he said.
“Last year, it was front and centre that people were saying the subsidy wasn’t being used properly.”
Nutrition North was launched in 2011 as a joint initiative between Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada and Health Canada.
It is designed “to make nutritious food and some essential items more affordable and more accessible” to residents of 124 “isolated northern communities,” including all 25 Nunavut municipalities and Nunavik’s 14 communities.
A University of Toronto study published last year in the Journal of Public Economics concluded only 67 cents of each dollar invested in Nutrition North is reflected in lower prices at northern grocery retailers.
“I think The Fifth Estate did something as well,” said Vandal, referring to other exposés on Nutrition North that have been broadcast in the past year.
Iqaluit’s Northmart was one focus of a Feb. 23 CBC Fifth Estate investigation that raised questions about grocery prices in the North.
If mounting criticism in media and academia is the smoke, is Nutrition North on fire?
“Not necessarily,” said Vandal. “I believe there’s enough questions in the public that we need to reassure the public that we’re looking at this in an unbiased way, and what better way than to go external and do a review.”
Vandal plans to appoint a ministerial special representative in early 2025 to launch the review.
The representative, reporting directly to the minister of northern affairs, will be independent of the federal government. They will have a mandate to meet with national and regional Indigenous organizations, as well as relevant federal government organizations, to evaluate Nutrition North’s effectiveness and make recommendations on how to improve it.
A final report would be completed in 2026.
If malfeasance is found anywhere along the line, will the organizations or individuals responsible be held to account?
“Well, I think we’re getting ahead of ourselves,” said Vandal.
“Let’s let the [ministerial special representative] do their job. I think Nutrition North is a very good program, but if there are efficiencies I want to know about them.”
A federal NDP call to reform the Nutrition North program and force big grocery chains and suppliers to lower prices on essential food was defeated this summer in the House of Commons.
At the time of the vote, the program was under internal review and Vandal at the time had floated the idea of an external review.
The minister said he will examine the external review’s finding with an open mind.
“If it can be demonstrated there’s a better way of doing it or if efficiencies can be found, we will do it,” Vandal said.
“I think in these tough times food security is a huge issue, which is why we have to make sure every single penny of Nutrition North — the retail portion of it — is going to northerners.”
In addition to the retail subsidy portion of Nutrition North, it also includes the Harvesters Support Grant, the Community Food Programs Fund, and the Food Security Research Grant.
Hmmm this’ll be interesting to follow.
Can t wait to see their findings
So if the results of this study show that the subsidy is being passed on to the customer, and that rising prices are caused by increasing product costs, shipping costs, staffing costs, operating expenses etc, will the retailers in the North receive an apology from Lori, the NDP and everyone else who has called them thieves for the past number of years? Yeah, didn’t think so.
They’re thieves to their own employees, the top execs are making the money, do their workers make enough to live on? Like many other businesses in Canada they appear to be using temporary foreign workers who’re willing to take less pay.
They’re not your friend, unless you’re a shareholder.
THATS WHY I DON T SHOP THERE !!!!!!!!!
You mean if their findings suddenly contradict the findings of every single academic and investigative inquiry into it thus far?
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Why focus on such an unlikely hypothetical? You are likely just burying your head in the sand about what is going on….
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So if the results of this study show that the subsidy is NOT being passed on to the customer, and that Lori, the NDP and everyone else who has called them thieves for the past number of years was RIGHT, will you apologise to them? Yeah, didn’t think so.
I’d really love to read some of these studies you are referring to. Can you provide a link, or even the title of one?
Thanks in advance
Example: https://atrium.lib.uoguelph.ca/items/07d2ecd7-f41f-48a5-af24-30f5e329553a
Found with very quick simple search online…
Interesting, so according to the assessment of the OP the “subsidy is NOT being passed on to the customer”
Yet, the author of the study says: “I estimate the pass-through rate of this subsidy and find that it is fully passed on to consumers.”
Were you the OP? Imagine posting a studying saying the exact opposite of what you pretend “every single academic and investigative inquiry into it thus far” has said!
Hilarious…
You’re right, this is funny!!
Let’s not ignore the fact this study also states that lack of competition has nothing to do with the high prices and that different cost structures are the culprit.
So basically, this U of Guelph study contradicts 99% of the posters here.
That is giving two major northern retailers way too much of a lead time for this review. I anticipate they are re-vamping their pricing and policies already. why lose a good money eh? Golden Goose you might say.
Wonder how long will it take to review, hopefully not too long, nutrition prices have been soaring high prices and our pay grade have never been increased to match the needs for our families.
In the economic system we generally operate in, proving that food subsidies provided to retailers are not being passed on is a really difficult task. Decades ago, companies used to use “cost plus” pricing, where they would take what their own cost for a product is and add a percentage to get the price they sell at. Using that strategy would make finding fault fairly easy.
However, many companies these days use demand-based pricing. Demand-based pricing really has no basis on a company’s own costs. It all depend on what a consumer is willing to pay. So, if enough consumers are willing to pay $14 for a pound of strawberries at the grocery that it equals the ideal amount of what Northern would like to sell in terms of strawberries, that is what they will set their price as. Then, NN comes along and says that they’re going to give Northern $4 to lower the price on that pound of strawberries to $10. Well, then there are more consumers willing to pay $10 for a pound of strawberries, and Northern consistently sells out of strawberries. They don’t want to order more strawberries, because they have limited freight and storage space and need to supply other goods. So, what do they do? Surprise, surprise, they raise the price of strawberries to get to the level of demand that they want.
Nutrition North is fundamentally flawed in this way. You cannot allow a retailer to collect the subsidy on behalf of the consumer, because there is a direct conflict in pricing strategy.
I honestly don’t know what the “best” way would be, but as a possible option, how about a system that is kind of like the Coop? Every shopper can get an account, you use your account when you buy groceries. There is a system that tracks your purchases and then every month or so, you get a “dividend”, more accurately in this case would be a “rebate”, which would be based on the NN-eligible foods you purchased in the last time frame. You can have the retailers mark which foods are NN-eligible.
Perhaps one should inquire of possible “Profiteering” by the historical HBC Company, recent Northern Stores and the Airline Services. If there is by any one, don’t the Inuit qualify for some “Class Action Law Suite” or Infringements of Civil Rights? That’ll clean up the mess. lol
Will see prices go up again at northern stores before they receive the funding and pretend to lower there prices when they they receive the funding
Why not give us something similar to a treaty card 🙂
But why? This is a land claims area.
Treaty card? 😂
Next thing you know, you’ll ask/demand Inuit stop paying taxes.
Create more animosity towards the people?
I gladly pay taxes.🤘✌️ and work.
The GN just gave their employees a substantial pay raise recently, wonder when Northmart and Canadian North will jack up their prices now ?!
When JP funding started to roll out, our northern store decided it was time to raise the prices of their nutritional foods, seeing as junk food can’t be bought with JP funds.
The only way to solve the problem of the high cost of living in the north, is to connect us by road or train to the south. But again, it’s all down to funds.
No investment into the future will ensure that we depend on fly in goods and prices will only continue to rise.
Go see prices down south in ottawa almost same price as iqaluit for most items. Ya pops and cooking oil super expensive but healthy food not much more expensive in nunavut except maybe in north baffin. Thank you nutrition north for making healthy food more affordable
Very true, Tt; I’ve spent years comparing food prices among communities in Nunavut, small towns in the South, and larger cities. Food prices here in Nunavut are very reasonably priced. Even essentials such as dish soap, toothpaste, and toilet paper compare favorably
Non-essentials such as hair conditioner, and non-food items for consumption such as fruit juice, Fruit Loops, and frozen dinners are easily triple down-South cost. Those items are not covered under Nutrition North, nor should they be subsidized any more so than pop, pot, beer, or cigarettes
As an addition to the review, talk to Amazon about having ALL the communities included in the freight benefit of Prime. Not just Iqaluit.
I find it strange that 4 people gave a thumbs down on this suggestion. Can you expand on this?
Do you realize Amazon (with no freight cost) would help your pocketbook? In other words, Amazon would be the competition you are all demanding for.
Thanks for all your comments, John; you add a considerable amount to the discussion here and on other columns.
Northern Stores are part of the North West Company (stock ticker NWC); Amazon is also a public company (AMZN). Both are owned by shareholders – like you and me. Shareholders want a return on their investment, usually through dividends or capital gains. Shareholders invest voluntarily and for profit. What shareholders do with their profits is a personal decision. I do not want my profits subsidizing Nunavut citizens.
You and I are also taxpayers; we want return for our tax dollars, which are taken from us involuntarily – mainly through income and consumption taxes. My ‘return’ for tax dollars is when they are spent, effectively, on programs and infrastructure which I favor – which is overall, rare. The only, albeit feeble, say I have in that spending is by casting a vote at election time. I am not deluded that a change of politicians at any government level will materially improve or change how my money is spent, but have a weak hope that social policy might be steered to my favor dependent on politicians’ influence and leaning.
Overall the only meaningful bang that I get for my efforts and earnings are when they are controlled by me or someone in my immediate circle. To remain at peace, I accept and tolerate what I cannot control.
Let’s say there’s 25,000 adults in nunavut. And let’s say all 25,000 of them paid the $100 for Amazon prime. That would mean 2.5 Million in revenue from prime membership fees from Nunavut. If everyone ordered let’s say 1000 pounds per year (which is probably on the low end), amazon would be losing about $4000 per year (assuming about $4/lb to ship here). The math doesn’t add up Mr. Murphy
*$4000 per person per year. Now multiply that by 25,000 (that’s $100,000,000) and that’s probably about what canada post was losing every year by allowing Amazon to ship here for free.
Now you have me confused. Are you saying Amazon is not paying Canada Post for the shipments up north just because they don’t charge me?
I think Amazon may be losing sales but is not having to pay freight on the lost sales.
I believe Amazon pays freight to Canada Post, whether they recover it from me or not.
The only cost Canada Post incurred was the time staff spent changing the postal code on the parcels sent here.
J P Murphy.. uncle ,they will not change anything or their prices because its a colonized distributor.
What does that even mean?
Bring back the food mail program, that program was much better than this Northmart program, the airlines benefit also.
About 18 years ago, when I moved here, I compared what I spent on food here compared to Ottawa and it was twice as much. I have not done any comparison yet. Anecdotally, I have noticed that some items such vegetables are reasonably priced but others like soy milk that have had northern subsidies labels on them have exorbitant prices. The logic of how the subsidy is applied is hard to understand and whether it is truly passed on to citizens is unclear to me.
I thought Lori solved this when she asked an executive how much his salary was in comparison to a 16-year old cashier that has frequent tardiness, attendance, and smoke break issues
Truly the most Lori moment.
How many reviews of the food mail program do we need, every new MP screams for a review, the current program is good with a few tweaks it will be better, every place in Canada complains about cost of food.No I don’t work for NWC or Coop, I can buy a bag of potatoes, carrots, onions, and put tuktu in it and have a nice stew and glass of milk, now if the government would do something about the price of best.