Horizontal initiative: Nutrition North Canada
Table of contents
General information
Lead department: Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC)
Federal partner departments: Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)
Start date of the horizontal initiative: April 1, 2011
End date of the horizontal initiative: Ongoing
Description of the horizontal initiative:The core objective of Nutrition North Canada (NNC) is to help make perishable, nutritious and country food more accessible and more affordable than it otherwise would be to residents of eligible isolated northern communities without year-round surface (road, rail or marine) access. Through Budget 2021, NNC expanded its mandate to include food security. Registered retailers in the North, country food processors/distributors located in eligible communities, and food suppliers can apply for a subsidy based on the weight of eligible foods shipped by air to eligible northern communities. These subsidies are to be passed on to northern consumers by appropriate reductions in the selling prices of eligible foods. The NNC program — National Manual governs the terms of the funding agreements with CIRNAC's subsidy recipients. In 2022–23, NNC expanded the subsidy to food banks and not-for-profit entities supplying eligible communities with critical food items at no cost to residents, in partnership with the representative Indigenous government/organization.
In addition to supporting store-bought foods, the program's Harvesters Support Grant (HSG) aims to support the entirety of the harvesting practice and local food initiatives in 112 eligible communities. The Grant was co-developed with Indigenous partners and supports locally-led food security solutions and self-determination, with funding flowing through Indigenous governments and organizations to make sure that northern food systems reflect the needs of communities and are culturally-appropriate. In the first year of its delivery, the Grant supported over 5500 harvesters.
Funding from Budget 2021 facilitated the expansion of NNC's Harvesters Support Grant, and launched a new component, the Community Food Programs Fund, increasing total funding from $8 million per year to $40 million per year. The Community Food Programs Fund supports food sharing activities in eligible communities, such as bulk buying, elders meals programs, school food programs, and others. In 2022–23, NNC signed 2-year grant agreements in the amount of $120.7 million with 23 Indigenous governments and organizations to deliver the Harvesters Support Grant and Community Food Programs Fund in 112 isolated communities.
Through Budget 2021 investments, NNC also launched the Food Security Research Grant to conduct Indigenous-led research food security research in isolated communities and fill critical data gaps which may inform the subsidy trajectory moving forward. In 2022–23, NNC funded 5 Indigenous-led research projects examining food access inequality and food insecurity, awarding a total of $1.2 million to successful applicants.
These expansions to the program have given Northerners better access to traditional foods and harvesting practices, and supported community-based food security activities. NNC has expanded the program subsidy to include food banks and charitable organization serving isolated communities. This development has been a critical component in strengthening partnerships with local leadership and charitable organizations.
Given that there are a number of factors that influence healthy eating patterns other than food cost, ISC and PHAC complement the NNC retail subsidy by providing funding to support culturally-appropriate retail and community-based nutrition education initiatives. These initiatives aim to increase knowledge of healthy eating and develop skills for the selection and preparation of healthy store-bought and traditional or country foods.
Governance structures: The NNC Advisory Board (the Advisory Board) is the high-level governance structure for the NNC Horizontal Initiative. In addition to representatives from Northern Affairs, ISC and PHAC, Advisory Board membership also includes northern residents. This approach strengthens program governance by providing Northerners with a direct voice in the program. The Board meets monthly to ensure that the initiative is properly managed and that northern residents receive its full benefits, including 3 face-to-face meetings a year (2 of which can happen in NNC communities and the third is typically in Ottawa).
The Advisory Board also provides recommendations to the Minister of Northern Affairs to help guide the management, direction and activities of the program. Recommendations from the Advisory Board go through senior-level review and approval within Northern Affairs, including the Director General of Northern Strategic Policy Branch, the Assistant Deputy Ministers and the Deputy Ministers, before final approval by the Minister of Northern Affairs.
NNC's policy trajectory continues to be informed by the Indigenous Working Group (IWG) and the Inuit-Crown Food security working group (ICFSWG). Launched in May 2017, the IWG gives Indigenous partners the opportunity to co-develop program adjustments and improvements. Members of the IWG are comprised of Indigenous organizations and governments who represent NNC's eligible communities, and the IWG has a NNC co-chair partnering with a co-chair from an Indigenous organization. The ICFSWG was announced in December 2018, and is a part of the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee (ICPC). This working group is focused on developing sustainable food systems through the lens of food security in Inuit Nunangat, and NNC continues to work closely with the group to address the challenges faced by Inuit communities.
As lead department, Northern Affairs ensures timely and accurate reporting for the horizontal initiative, through the CIRNAC Departmental Plan and Departmental Results Report, and liaises with the Treasury Board Secretariat as required.
| Federal organizations | Total federal funding allocated (from start to end date) | Total federal planned spending to date | Total federal actual spending to date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CIRNAC | $965,607,786 (up to 2022) and $112,846,036 (ongoing), $159,839,000 received as a renewal June 2022 |
$965,607,786 (up to 2022) and $112,846,036 (ongoing), $159,839,000 received as a renewal June 2022 |
$1,185,942,045 |
| ISC | $36,266,000 (2011–12 to 2020–21) and $4,363,200 (ongoing) |
$46,520,060 | $42,215,616 |
| PHAC | $1,975,000 (2016–17 to 2020–21) and $385,000 (ongoing) |
$2,745,000 | $2,499,530 |
Date of last renewal of the horizontal initiative: June 2022
| Federal organizations | Total federal funding allocated at the last renewal, and source of funding | Total planned spending since the last renewal | Total actual spending since the last renewal |
|---|---|---|---|
| CIRNAC | $159,839,000 (2022–23 to 2023–24), Budget 2021 and 2022 | $159,839,000 | $87,043,281 |
| ISC | Not applicable | $4,363,200 | $3,871,768 |
| PHAC | Not applicable | $385,000 | $335,059 |
Additional federal funding received after the last renewal: Not applicable
Fiscal year of planned completion of next evaluation: 2024−25 Evaluation of Nutrition North Canada (horizontal evaluation led by CIRNAC)
| CIRNAC | NNC expanded the Harvester's Support Grant (HSG) to include the Community Food Programs Fund. The program also engaged in 2 co-development sessions with HSG partners to develop performance indicators to ensure the program is measuring its success in a meaningful way. The subsidy program was also expanded to include food banks and other charitable organizations. As a result, charities and food banks are now able to claim subsidies for transporting and distributing food and essential household items in eligible northern communities. |
|---|---|
| ISC | With NNC investments in Nutrition education initiatives, 32,528 participants attended nutrition education activities, including diverse target populations such as children, youth, women and seniors. Reported activities took place in a variety of venues, for example, in schools, daycares, stores, community centres, and on the land. This is an increase of approximately 10,000 from the 2020–21 data captured in the 2021–22 reporting cycle. Nutrition education activities included promotion of healthy eating knowledge, food skills development, in-store taste tests and grocery store tours, traditional food harvesting and preparation, as well as activities involving accessing food (e.g., healthy meals, good food boxes and food hampers). 76% of funding recipients that submitted annual reports indicated that community members have increased their knowledge of healthy eating and skills, and are choosing and preparing healthy food. The results for 2022–23 are based on annual community (recipient) reports for 2021–22 and show that 97% (108 out of 111) of eligible communities received funding support for NNC nutrition education Initiatives by ISC. There was an increase in the amount of reports submitted to ISC in 2021–22: 46% (25 out of 54) of funding recipients submitted their annual reports compared to 33% (18 out of 54) for 2020–21. As such, there was an increase in the number of nutrition education activities reported: approximately 3000 activities in 2021–22 compared to 1500 activities in 2020–21. |
| PHAC | Funding recipients delivered a total of 884 nutrition education activities to more than 2,400 participants. These activities included cooking programs focused on food skills development, gardening and local harvesting activities, healthy offerings and promoting nutrition and healthy food information via social media and hard copy resource distribution, among others. Funding recipients involved multiple population groups in various activities across PHAC's 10 communities, of which approximately 12% reached children, 15% reached youth, 50% involved adults and 23% involved seniors. Participation increased in 2022–23 from previous years as recipients continue to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on community activities. Progress continues to be made towards strengthening knowledge of healthy eating and supporting skills in the selection and preparation of healthy store-bought and traditional or country food. |
Contact information
CIRNAC
Wayne Walsh
Director General, Northern Strategic Policy Branch
Northern Affairs Organization
15 Eddy Street, Gatineau, Quebec, K1A 0H4
819-994-6466
Wayne.Walsh@rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca
ISC
Dr. Tom Wong
Chief Medical Officer and Director General, Office of Population and Public Health
Population Health and Primary Care Directorate
First Nations and Inuit Health Branch
613-952-9616
Tom.Wong@canada.ca
PHAC
Mark Nafekh
Director General, Centre for Health Promotion
Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention Branch
613-316-8526
Mark.Nafekh@phac-aspc.gc.ca
Shared outcome
Food security is strengthened in eligible communities
| Name of theme | Theme 1: Food access | Theme 2: Nutrition education | Internal services |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theme outcomes | Local food systems and food economies in eligible communities are strengthened to ensure equitable and secure food access for residents | Isolated northern communities are healthier | Not applicable |
| CIRNAC | $961,736,378 (up to 2022) $112,356,264 (ongoing) $159,839,000 (2022–23 to 2023–24) Alleviate the cost of nutritious, perishable foods purchased in isolated northern communities |
Not applicable | $3,871,408 |
| ISC | Not applicable | $21,766,000 (2016–17 to 2020–21) $4,363,200 (ongoing) Nutrition Education Initiatives (top up) |
$594,505 (2016–17 to 2020–21) $118,901 (ongoing) |
| PHAC | Not applicable | $1,975,000 over 5 years (2016–17 to 2020–21) $385,000 (ongoing) Nutrition education initiatives (top up) |
Not applicable |
Performance information
Horizontal initiative overview
Name of horizontal initiative: Nutrition North Canada
Horizontal initiative shared outcome: Food security is strengthened in eligible communities
Total federal funding allocated since last renewal: $159,839,000
2022–23 planned spending: $110,274,200
2022–23 actual spending: $91,300,108
| Performance indicators | Targets | Date to achieve target | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prevalence of severe food insecurity | 5% decrease in prevalence of severe food insecurity | March 2026 | Not applicable |
Theme horizontal initiative activities
Theme 1 details
Name of theme: Food access
Total federal theme funding allocated since the last renewal: $159,839,000
2022–23 federal theme planned spending: $105,526,000
2022–23 federal theme actual spending: $87,043,281
| Theme outcomes | Theme performance indicators | Theme targets | Date to achieve theme targets | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Local food systems and food economies in eligible communities are strengthened to ensure equitable and secure food access for residents | Number of communities sharing, freezers, and country food-based social initiatives supported by the grant | To be determined in 2023–24* | March 31, 2024 | Not applicable |
| * The target will be determined following stakeholder engagement which occurred in February 2023. | ||||
Theme 1 horizontal initiative activities
Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada
Link to the department's program inventory: Nutrition North Canada
Horizontal initiative activity: Retail subsidy
Total federal funding allocated to the activity since the last renewal: $63,050,000
2022–23 planned spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $41,000,000
2022–23 actual spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $23,535,847
| 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity expected results | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity performance indicators | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity targets | Date to achieve horizontal initiative activity targets | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents in eligible communities have access to perishable and non-perishable foods and staple goods at reduced prices | Percentage variation in the weight of subsidized items shipped | At least 3% | March 31, 2023 | 0.5%* |
| * The pandemic caused an unprecedented surge in shipments, and post-pandemic stabilization is a natural correction to that exceptional spike in volumes shipped. The program expects year-to-year linear growth as a result. | ||||
Link to the department's program inventory: Nutrition North Canada
Horizontal initiative activity: Harvesters Support Grant (HSG)
Total federal funding allocated to the activity since the last renewal: $36,000,000
2022–23 planned spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $24,000,000
2022–23 actual spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $23,497,751
| 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity expected results | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity performance indicators | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity targets | Date to achieve horizontal initiative activity targets | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents in eligible communities have access to support for harvesting activities | Percentage of HSG eligible communities implementing harvesting support initiatives | To be determined with Indigenous partners in 2023–24 | March 31, 2024 | Not applicable |
Link to the department's program inventory: Nutrition North Canada
Horizontal initiative activity: Community Food Programs Fund
Total federal funding allocated to the activity since the last renewal: $60,789,000
2022–23 planned spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $40,526,000
2022–23 actual spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $40,009,683
| 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity expected results | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity performance indicators | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity targets | Date to achieve horizontal initiative activity targets | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents in eligible communities have access to support for local food production, food infrastructure, and community food initiatives | Percentage of HSG eligible communities implementing community food initiatives | To be determined with Indigenous partners in 2023–24 | March 31, 2024 | Not applicable |
Theme 2 details
Name of theme: Nutrition education
Total federal theme funding allocated since the last renewal: Not applicable
2022–23 federal theme planned spending: $4,748,200
2022–23 federal theme actual spending: $4,256,827
| Theme outcomes | Theme performance indicators | Theme targets | Date to achieve theme targets | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isolated northern communities are healthier | Percentage of NNC eligible of population reporting their health is excellent or very good* | First Nations: 44% Inuit: 44% |
March 2028 | 40.3% First Nations on reserve 36.9% Inuit in Inuit Nunangat |
| * This indicator is reflective of NNC communities, as the results are for First Nations from NNC eligible communities and Inuit living within the Inuit Nunangat. | ||||
Theme 2 horizontal initiative activities
Indigenous Services Canada
Link to the department's program inventory: Public Health Promotion and Disease Prevention (Healthy Living)
Horizontal initiative activity: Nutrition education initiatives
Total federal funding allocated to the activity since the last renewal: Not applicable
2022–23 planned spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $4,363,200
2022–23 actual spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $3,871,768
| 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity expected results | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity performance indicators | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity targets | Date to achieve horizontal initiative activity targets | 2022–23 actual results* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents in eligible communities have access to nutrition education initiatives | Percentage of communities offering nutrition education activities | 100% of communities | March 31, 2023 | 97 % |
| Number of participants taking part in nutrition education programs and activities | 30,000 participants | March 31, 2023 | 32,528 | |
| * 2022–23 results reflect community annual reports for 2021–22. This is based on the annual reporting cycle and when reports are due from communities (funding recipients). | ||||
Public Health Agency of Canada
Link to the department's program inventory: Health promotion
Horizontal initiative activity: Nutrition education initiatives
Total federal funding allocated to the activity since the last renewal: Not applicable
2022–23 planned spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $385,000
2022–23 actual spending for the horizontal initiative activity: $335,059
| 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity expected results | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity performance indicators | 2022–23 horizontal initiative activity targets | Date to achieve horizontal initiative activity targets | 2022–23 actual results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residents in eligible communities have access to nutrition education initiatives | Percentage of communities offering nutrition education activities | 100% of communities | March 31, 2023 | 100% |
| Number of participants taking part in nutrition education programs and activities | 2,250 participants | March 31, 2023 | 2,461 |
Total spending, all themes
| Themes | Total federal funding allocated since last renewal | 2022–23 total federal planned spending | 2022–23 total federal actual spending |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theme 1: Food access (CIRNAC) | $159,839,000 | $105,526,000 | $87,043,281 |
| Theme 2: Nutrition education (ISC and PHAC) | Not applicable | $4,748,200 | $4,256,827 |
| Total, all themes | $159,839,000 | $110,274,200 | $91,300,108 |