OTTAWA, ONTARIO (November 28, 2012) – The Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board visited Nain, Labrador November 20, 2012, where they met with residents of the community to hear their views on the Nutrition North Canada (NNC) program.
“The Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board plays an important role in providing advice on how the NNC program is working in communities across the North,” said the Honourable John Duncan, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development. “Since the launch of Nutrition North Canada in the spring of 2011, Northerners have seen prices on some healthy, perishable foods drop by as much as 37 percent, while there has been an eight percent drop in the cost of the Northern Food Basket.”
As part of the NNC program, accountability measures for retailers and suppliers have been put in place to ensure that the NNC subsidy is being passed on to consumers. Board members were able to see first-hand the effect NNC is having on communities in Labrador, when they toured three local stores: Big Land Grocery, the Nain Northern Store and Jacquie's Convenience Ltd. Board Members also had the opportunity to bring what they heard directly to wholesalers and other provincial and regional governments who are working to provide healthy and perishable foods to Northerners.
The tour also included a visit to Nain’s community freezer and an NNC nutrition education session on making healthy food choices which was supported by the Nunatsiavut Government Department of Health and Social Development.
“It is our job to listen to Northerners and to provide advice on how Nutrition North Canada can continue to improve access to healthy, perishable foods in our communities,” said Michele Wood, Labrador member, Nutrition North Canada Advisory Board. “As Northerners ourselves, we know the importance of country food for families and communities across the North, and we are committed to using NNC resources to improve public knowledge of the value of traditional food in the northern diet.”
The members of the NNC Advisory Board represent a wide range of northern perspectives and interests. They meet several times a year in person and by teleconference and have held public meetings in Kuujjuaq, Quebec; Norman Wells, NWT and now Nain, Labrador. The next northern public meeting is scheduled for the spring of 2013.
