Statement by Gord Johns, NDP Critic for Agriculture and Agri-Food, on the Government’s National Food Security Strategy

“The announcement of a National Food Security Strategy is a long-overdue acknowledgment from the federal government that too many Canadians are struggling to afford the food they need.

We welcome measures to strengthen competition, challenge the dominance of giant grocery chains, support local food infrastructure, and promote Canadian food sovereignty. It in encouraging to see the government finally adopting ideas that New Democrats have championed for years.

But the ultimate success of any food security strategy will be judged by how well it addresses the everyday emergency Canadians face in just putting food on the table.

Today, one in four families in Canada are skipping meals or cutting back on portions due to the skyrocketing cost of living. Unfortunately, this plan includes no income supports to specifically safeguard household and community food security.

Food prices have risen dramatically since 2019, while wages have failed to keep pace with inflation, and housing costs continue to consume an increasing share of household budgets.

New Democrats have also consistently raised concerns about excessive corporate profiteering throughout the supply chain, and the growing concentration of corporate power in the grocery sector.

That is why we have proposed establishing publicly run and operated grocery stores, working at every step of the food supply chain and creating good-paying unionized jobs. If run at national scale, this policy would reduce food prices by up to 40%, with even deeper savings in rural, remote, and Northern communities, where food prices are especially high.

We will also continue to urge the government to immediately implement a windfall profits tax on oil and gas companies, set to make record profits of over $90 billion this year alone from the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz. This would dramatically slow down inflation and offer welcome reprieve to hardworking Canadian families.

Canadians can count on New Democrats to keep standing up to corporate giants and ensure that everyone can access health, affordable food and live a dignified life.”