With the framework for a national school lunch program on Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s desk and the federal budget just weeks away, supporters hope the proposal will get the green light. .
Tyler Meredith, a policy thinker and former economic adviser to Freeland and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said the proposed plan comes as food prices continue to pose a political headache for governments across the country. Ta.
“The proposal has now been submitted to Minister Freeland and we are looking to see if it will be included in the budget,” Meredith said. “I’m cautiously optimistic.”
The federal government developed the framework over the past year in consultation with provinces, territories, local governments, Indigenous organizations and other stakeholders.
The Liberal government has long promised to move in this direction, and Prime Minister Trudeau campaigned in this direction during his 2021 re-election campaign, pledging to spend $1 billion over five years on such a plan.
Community food organizations say the funding is urgently needed as Canadians increasingly struggle to put food on the table and many families find themselves waiting in food bank lines. ing.
“This will help us meaningfully address both the high cost of food that many families face and, frankly, the tremendous amount of time and effort required to prepare lunches for children. Deaf,” Meredith said.
Freeland did not comment on the plans currently in front of him. A spokesperson for his office said the 2024 budget, expected on April 16, will focus on affordability, housing construction and job creation.
Partnership with local communities
Although education is not under federal jurisdiction, the national school lunch program allows Ottawa to partner with provinces and territories, many of which are already working with community groups.
Meredith said the national school program will be similar in scale to Ottawa’s national child care program.
Efforts to lower child care costs to $10 a day required investment from federal, state and territory governments.
Providing school meals as a national program allows Ottawa to leverage its spending power in “a smart way to help address and alleviate concerns associated with inflation,” Meredith said.
“They can potentially buy food and distribute it at a scale where individual families don’t have the bargaining power to compete in the marketplace when it comes to filling shopping carts,” he said.
job creation
Last year, British Columbia, Manitoba and Nova Scotia allotted funding for school meals, but groups on the ground say partnering with the federal government would mean even more food by mouth.
Carolyn said, “No federal effort could have a greater impact on food affordability and family support for the money spent than the 2024 Budget’s investment in the National School Lunch Program.” I believe I have nothing to give.” Mr. Webb, Mobilization Coordinator for the Healthy School Lunch Coalition, Canada’s largest school lunch network.
Webb earlier this week called on Ottawa to fund the national program, saying it would help local producers and farmers and also create more jobs for food service workers.
“If we see a signal in the budget that the government wants to move in this direction, I think it will facilitate a pretty quick conversation about how states invest,” Meredith said.
“This is the most important issue facing families and voters from all walks of life, why they are dissatisfied and what they want the government to focus on.”
