Dalhousie professor makes food cost recommendations to Ottawa

As food costs continue to climb across the country, efforts are underway to rein them in.

“I’m testifying before the parliamentary committee on finance,” says Sylvain Charlebois, head of Dalhousie University Agri-Food Lab. “We believe that Canadians spend well over $1 billion on sales tax at the grocery store right now.”

He’ll be making three recommendations and asking government to:

• temporarily pause carbon tax increases affecting our food supply
• to lift sales taxes on food products
• to launch a national nutrition coupon program fund

That is a program that has been running in Nova Scotia since 2019.

“Sending cheques to households is great, but gift certificates to be redeemed at farmers markets, you know for sure that the money will be spent on food, and not on anything else,” Charlebois says.

By all accounts it's been a success. Last year, the Nourishing Communities Coupon Program gave out the equivalent of $400,000 in alternative currency, helping more than 600 low-income households.

Ninety-six-and-a-half per cent of all those food dollars were redeemed, which means people need them and they’re using them, says Justin Cantafio, the executive director of Nova Scotia’s Farmer’s Markets. “We know that over three-fourths, give or take, have been redeemed on food products, which means folks are taking care of their needs , they know what to do when we give them the power of choice and autonomy.”

Having the money from the coupon program spent at local farmers markets means those dollars are staying in the community. That's another benefit for Nova Scotia, which has the most farmers markets per capita in Canada.

“These are new customers that are coming in, these are new dollars that are coming in. So we’re taking care of folks, but we’re also helping to stimulate the economy. That’s an economic multiplier effect that just can’t be done when food aid is going to the Loblaw’s and the Sobeys of the world,” Cantafio says.

Charlebois' testimony in Ottawa comes as officials start to lay the groundwork for the next federal budget. Whether his suggestions will be considered remains to be seen.

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.