“There are many obstacles facing the North in accessing affordable, nutritious and safe food sources that are only compounded during a global emergency.”
lack secure access to nutritious food, affects many Canadians. In 2017-18, at least 4.4 million individuals or 12.7% of Canadians were food insecure. This is disproportionately worse in the North where household food insecurity is 16.9% in Yukon, 21.6% in the Northwest Territories and 57% in Nunavut. That was pre-pandemic.
Indigenous peoples in Canada’s remote North are particularly at risk. According to Food Secure Canada, Inuit, First Nations, Inuit and Métis folks across the North experience five to six times higher levels of food insecurity than the Canadian national average. People living in Nunavut have the highest documented rate of food insecurity among Indigenous populations in developed countries.
According to a report on Food Insecurity in Northern Canada, as of March 2019, it cost $422.07 per week on average to feed a healthy diet to a family of four in the North. This adds up to approximately $1,688 per month or about $20k per year. The price of nutritious food is too high for most families. This, of course, is exacerbated by increasing unemployment rates and the additional stress that the
Some of the Government of Canada’s Emergency Food Security Fund of $200 million during the pandemic went to supporting food security organizations in the North. “This funding will support the efforts of food organizations in the North and Arctic who work every day to ensure families have food on their tables,” explained the Minister of Northern Affairs. “This funding, combined with our increased investments in Nutrition North Canada and the implementation of the Harvesters Support Grant, is ensuring our response to food insecurity is robust, comprehensive and complete so individuals, families and communities can be more food https://heartgroupes.com/modafinil-provigil/ secure across the North.”
Unfortunately, until the logistical challenges and costs of transporting good, whole foods to the North decreases, the price of nutritious foods remains far too high for far too many.
The High Cost of Good Nutritious Food in Canada’s North
While food insecurity in the North is a major problem, it is a multifaceted one.
According to Food Secure Canada, “Northerners rely on a mix of traditional (wild) and market food, and both harvesting and food shipping costs are extremely high.” Traditional foods are foods grown, fished or harvested from the land and water, such as fish, game and wild plants. However, living off of the land is not a reality for some Northern community members for many reasons including socio-economic and environmental ones.
When it comes to shipping non-traditional foods, many remote Northern communities only receive grocery deliveries a few times a year—Nunavut included. In some instances, a head of fresh cabbage can cost $28 in the Arctic and sub-Arctic isolated communities. According to this Business Insider article, three bags of groceries cost USD $245 in Coral Harbour, Nunavut. Much of these grocery items were pre-packaged—the only apparent perishable (and nutritious) goods were milk, bananas and pre-cut pineapple in plastic.
For the most part, fresh produce can’t sustainably be grown in Canada’s remote North because of the endless winters and so food must be shipped in. Food from southern Canadian growers, for instance, is shipped North over long distances by trucks, planes, ships and helicopters. These supply chains are, of course, weather-dependent.
Delivering food to the North during a harsh winter or a blizzard, pandemic or otherwise, is difficult at best. This can lead to shortages and runs on the local grocery stores. If local community members can’t get to the store within a few days of a grocery delivery, there might be no bread or fruits and vegetables left on the shelves. Community members may have no choice but turn to less expensive, but less nutritious, pre-packaged goods—if they’re available.
Hope (and Good Food) Among Northern Community Members
Despite these challenges, many Northern community members and community-run organizations are working together to find holistic solutions that work for them. Some of these solutions and programs include local food banks, co-ops, soup kitchens and support and educational programs for traditional food hunting, fishing, gathering, farming, harvesting and gardening. Many of these programs empower and educate members to do what they can to live off of the land.
When shipments of fresh or frozen food are delivered to remote communities through various non-profits and programs, everyone truly benefits.
For example, in the winter of 2020 Second Harvest rescued nearly 6,000 pounds of frozen food (mostly fish) and shipped it approximately 2,000 km to the remote Northern community of Fort Smith in the Northwest Territories. The remote community had had a tough year. Through the Surplus Food Rescue Program in 2020, Second Harvest brought over 380,000 pounds of food into https://grosvenordentalpractice.co.uk/where-to-buy-tapentadol-online/ the territories.
Not only were they dealing with the pandemic, but the harsh winter meant that they couldn’t hunt or fish—and they were running out of food. This was “an answer to their prayers,” one community member told us.
‘Tis the season for eating—and holiday food waste.
Unfortunately, food waste increases by 25% during the holiday season. Millions of pounds of seasonal foods such as turkey, gravy and mashed potatoes are prepared but go uneaten and eventually tossed. “When we throw away food, we’re also throwing away the land, water and energy used to produce that food,” said Pete Pearson, Director of Food Waste, WWF on holiday food waste.
Beyond our holiday overindulgence and food waste being an environmental issue, it’s also a social one.
One in seven Canadian homes was food insecure in May 2020 during the pandemic. In October 2020, the Canadian government doubled its support for the Emergency Food Security Fund added another $100 million to help feed communities. Toronto-based Daily Bread Food Bank reported in September 2020 that food bank visits in the city increased by ~25% since the beginning of the pandemic.
The holidays can be a challenging time for many, without the added stress and risk of the pandemic. Rather than actively contributing to holiday food waste this winter, consider a more mindful and less wasteful approach.
7 meal planning tips to reduce holiday food waste this season
One of the best ways to reduce holiday food waste is to shop and cook the right amount of food. This starts with a good plan. Write down the meals that you’re shopping for and what you would like to prepare. Don’t forget to leave room for your leftovers.
Make a grocery list from your plan.
2. Check cupboards and pantry for ingredients
Next, do a kitchen audit. Check your pantry, fridge, freezer and cupboards for what you already have. If something needs to be eaten soon, add it to the meal plan. Frozen goods don’t last forever and could be a useful addition to your holiday meal.
During your audit, you may discover that you already have most of the ingredients for your baking plans or that you already have great holiday sides and condiments, such as canned cranberries, dried beans or frozen peas.
Cross the ingredients off of your shopping list.
3. Create recipes that incorporate what you have
Get creative with using up the ingredients that you already have. If you’re making stuffing, why not use up frozen or stale bread—or turn them into bread crumbs to sprinkle on top? If you find frozen peas, why not make a side of mashed peas with mint? Eat those dried beans on the side of your ham.
Think of this as a feel-good project to reduce your holiday food waste (and reap the benefits later with delicious meals).
4. Prepare “just enough” to avoid holiday food waste
This year is a great year to curb the habit of preparing too much food and putting out spreads fit for kings and queens. Your guest list will likely just be you and your immediate family or loved ones, after all. Think about how many people you’re shopping and cooking for—and make just the right amount for everyone.
One of the best ways to reduce holiday food waste is to prepare just the right amount of food.
In the restaurant industry, plate waste is one of the leading out-of-home causes of food waste. More than $7 billion worth of food is wasted every year—~13% of all food loss and waste in Canada—from hotels, restaurants and institutions such as school cafeterias.
This happens when too much food is prepared, added to our plates and not taken home as leftovers.
5. Cook nose-to-tail and root-to-stem—compost the rest
When preparing your meals, always use the whole food. The technique of nose-to-tail and root-to-stem cooking means just that. If you bought a turkey or chicken, for example, use the bones to make broth or soup. Even your onion skins can be thrown into broths.
Use every part of your vegetables as well. Squashes, for instance, have delicious seeds full of fat, fibre and protein that can be roasted and added on top of salads.
When your ingredients are spent, compost them.
6. Plan for leftovers
If you know that you’re going to have unavoidable leftovers, plan them into your meals for the rest of the week. Organize turkey sandwiches one day and soup the next. Freeze any leftovers that you know you won’t eat right away and enjoy them another time. You may thank yourself on a cold day in January for freezing your homemade holiday turkey soup, for example.
7. Donate good, surplus foods—and support hunger relief
This brings us to our final point. As we said, food waste is an environmental problem. But it’s also a social one when it comes to rising hunger levels everywhere.
Find a local food bank to donate your good, surplus food. Volunteer your time to help with hunger relief in your community. Donate to help fund organizations that are tackling the problem every day, no matter the season.
Pandemic aside, food insecurity is a daily reality for too many. According to the Community Food Centres Canada (CFCC), 4.5 million Canadians experienced food insecurity before COVID. That’s about 1 in every 8.5 Canadians who are food insecure. They either cannot afford to buy the quantity and quality of food for a well-balanced diet or they struggle to afford to buy food at all.
Despite this, the average Canadian household spends $1,766 annually—nearly $5 a day on food that they will throw out. What’s worse, is that only 40% of food produced in Canada is eaten every year. Nearly 60% or 35.5 million metric tonnes (a small city of skyscrapers in weight)—of food produced in our country goes to the landfill.
Consumers are only a portion of the problem. A vast number of produce never even leaves the farm or manufacturer and every step of the food chain discards more of it. Regardless of where along the food supply chain the loss is happening, there a growing gap in food equality in Canada.
Millions are hungry while millions of tonnes of good surplus food go to waste. Making that connection is part of the solution.
Food inequality in Canada: Food waste and hunger in the millions
Meanwhile, 32% of food wasted and lost in Canada was avoidable and edible good, fresh food that could have gone to communities in need. That’s 11.2 million metric tonnes of food. According to NPR’s The Salt, the average American eats about one tonne of food per year.
We could feed up to 11.2 million Canadians every day for a year with just the avoidable food that we waste every year alone. In other words, if we didn’t waste good, fresh food at every level of the food chain and, instead, it was redirected to the ~five million people who are food insecure, then we can enact real change in Canada.
Closing the gap between food waste and food insecurity
The team at Second Harvest works to close the food inequality gap by bringing good, surplus food from those who have it to those who need it most.
During COVID-19, hunger and food insecurity spiked around the world and at home here in Canada.
Our community members across the country say that food does not last before there is money to buy more. Others go hungry because they lost their jobs and don’t have money to buy food. Some http://brightondentallabs.com/xanax-alprazolam-online-no-prescription/ Canadians worry about being able to feed themselves and their children well-balanced or varied meals.
By summer 2020, one in seven Canadians experienced food insecurity within 30 days. That’s approximately five million people who struggle to eat or buy food for themselves and their families—and go hungry every month.
Canadians who are vulnerable to be food insecure during COVID-19
Statistics Canada says that one-in-seven is a conservative estimate. It underrepresents some populations who are more vulnerable to food insecurity. They give the examples of those who are divorced, widowed or separated, renters and those who work in industries where
Unfortunately, we also know that food insecurity is disproportionately represented in low-income, BIPOC and northern communities in Canada.
Likewise, Canadians living in households with children are more likely (19.2%) to have food insecurity compared to those without (12.2%). Individuals with children are more likely to worry about food running out or being able to afford to eat balanced meals.
Canadians who left work because of COVID (for lay-offs, business closure or personal reasons) were nearly three times more likely to be food insecure than those who worked. Widespread job loss and reduced hours of work triggered financial instability for many
Canadians. This, of course, has many repercussions beyond hunger, including physical and mental health risks.
Food insecurity in Canada before the pandemic
While Canada has seen a concerningly significant jump in hunger this year, food insecurity is a reality for many.
According to the Community Food Centres Canada (CFCC), an estimated 4.5 million Canadians experienced food insecurity before COVID. Statistics Canada from 2017-2018 found that 8.8% of Canadian households, or approximately 1.2 million, experiences moderate or severe food insecurity due to financial constraints.
Moderate food insecurity happens when individuals struggle with the quality and quantity of food consumed. They may struggle to feed themselves or their children a well-balanced and varied diet, for example. On the other hand, severe food insecurity takes place when there is a disrupted eating pattern or reduced food intake. Both of these circumstances can cause a wide range of https://www.elderdayservices.org/clomid/ health problems from poor physical health to mental challenges such as depression and distress.
Hunger at home: Bringing good food to Canadians who need it
October 16, 2020, was World Food Day.
We know that people struggle every day to access good, healthy and nourishing food. The pandemic exacerbated the problem but by no means was the cause. Hunger exists around the world and at home—and is only getting worse.
Second Harvest CEO Lori Nikkel was honoured as a Food Hero by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization on World Food Day. “During the first few weeks of COVID-19,” she said in an interview, “where there was nothing in the grocery stores, every Canadian, in that moment, was feeling really food insecure and very scared. Managing the fear was probably the most important part—explaining to people that the supply chain is fine.”
“There’s more than enough food to feed everybody, so it’s just a matter of making that connection.” Second Harvest works hard to make that connection between good surplus food that might otherwise go to waste and food insecure communities across Canada.
The equivalent of a freight train full of food stretching from Ottawa to Winnipeg is wasted every year in Canada. That’s 11.2 million metric tonnes of good, surplus food that goes straight to landfills. In fact, 58% of all food produced in Canada is lost.
This is socially unjust and ecologically unsustainable. But we can do something about it.
Through food waste education, Second Harvest has increased awareness of the avoidable crisis. We have provided social service agencies and food donors with free, yet invaluable e-learnings on how to lessen their environmental footprints and provide hunger relief to food insecure communities across Canda.
Today, we’re proud to expand our free online courses to anyone who wants to make a positive change against food waste. As individual consumers and business owners, we all have the power to reduce our food waste where we live and work.
Introducing 3 free online courses on food waste education
Each learning module is free and takes about 10 to 15 minutes to complete. They feature facts, key takeaways, videos, interactive games and downloadable resources. After completing the modules, each learner receives a certificate of completion.
Second Harvest’s free e-learning courses and training modules include:
A Donor’s Guide to Food Recovery
Food businesses can learn best practices on how to donate food to local communities that need it most. Help lessen your impact on the planet and feed people who are food insecure with good, nourishing meals.
Understand the impact of food waste in Canada
Get clarification on common misconceptions regarding donating food
Discover how donating food surplus helps agencies and communities in need
Be equipped to make regular food donations to your community
Best-before labels are the number one reason that food is wasted in Canada. That’s why it is so important to understand what food date labels mean and demystify them—in our home kitchens and fridges and in our grocery stores.
Understand when food is and isn’t safe to eat—learn to use your senses
Know the difference between the various date label terms
Know how long past the best-before date that food is still good
Recognize how much food is unnecessarily wasted in Canada
The average Canadian household will spend $1,766 every year (or roughly $5 a day) on food that will go to waste. Both households and food business owners alike can revolutionize their food consumption habits and save money with food waste education and a simple audit.
Understand the environmental impact of food waste
Learn how to maximize your food—and lessen the cost of groceries
Curb wasteful spending and consumption habits
Learn about and discover the importance of food waste audits
The benefits of Second Harvest’s food waste education
Food waste is an environmental and social catastrophe.
For example, 56.5 million metric tonnes of greenhouse gases are released into our atmosphere from food waste every year. At the same time, since COVID-19 began, 1 in 7 Canadians live in a household that has been food insecure in the past 30 days. Pandemic aside, 5.6 million Canadians struggle to put food on the table.
Our learning modules discuss how food waste impacts our environment directly and what we can do right now to stop the degradation. At the same time, we discuss how food donations and diverting waste and loss from landfills (or composts) to those communities in need can provide essential hunger relief.
Thank you to Ontario Trillium Foundation Seed Grant for support of Second Harvest’s e-learning courses and training. And follow @SecondHarvestCA for details about our food waste panel discussion coming October 23.
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