By Michael Wolfson Canada Child and Workers Benefits, food insecurity, health and disability, housing, Official Poverty Line, Poverty Reduction Strategy, Statistics Canada
The federal government is to be congratulated on its just-released Poverty Reduction Strategy. The strategy itself, running to over 100 pages, endorses the idea of an official poverty line, relieving Statistics Canada from the impossible task of finding a purely statistical basis for defining and measuring poverty. It further endorses the idea that poverty has […]
By Jino Distasio Canadian government, Canadian poverty, food banks, food desert, food insecurity, homelessness, Homelessness in Canada, housing initiatives, Mental health, poverty
There’s reason for hope A version of this commentary appeared in the Winnipeg Free Press, the Huffington Post and the Vancouver Province In North American cities like New York, San Francisco, Vancouver, Toronto and countless others, we have grown accustomed to seeing people who are homeless walk among us, often in the shadows, often with […]
By Natalie Riediger food insecurity, Health care in Canada, Obesity, Podcasts, smoking, sugar-sweetened beverage tax, tabacco tax
As high obesity rates continue to be a health concern for Canadians, there is growing interest in introducing a sugar sweetened beverage tax.
By Jino Distasio Canadian poverty, food banks, food desert, food insecurity, poverty
Canadian households are paying more for a nutritious basket of food with rising prices hitting low-income households hardest — especially those receiving government assistance.
By Natalie Riediger food insecurity, Health care in Canada, Obesity, smoking, sugar-sweetened beverage tax, tobacco tax
There has been increasing interest in the use of a sugar-sweetened beverage tax to curb the burden of obesity in Canada — call it a ‘pop tax’ if you like. A recent Senate report on obesity in Canada recommends assessing the possibility of a sugar-sweetened beverage tax and points to the high rates of taxation […]
By Carolyn Shimmin and Valerie Tarasuk Canadian poverty, Child poverty, food banks, food industry, food insecurity, Health care in Canada, health education, Low-income children, poverty
For many Canadians, food plays a central role in the holiday festivities. But for those experiencing food insecurity, a bountiful feast will not be in the cards this year. Over 4 million Canadians, including 1.15 million children experience some level of food insecurity.
By Elizabeth Lee Ford-Jones Child health, Child poverty, Child well-being, food insecurity, Low-income children, social paediatrics, Statistics Canada, UNICEF
UNICEF’S most recent report on child well-being in rich countries ranked Canada 17 out of 29 countries assessed. Sadly, this isn’t news. The House of Commons resolved to eradicate child poverty in 1989, but in late 2013, Statistics Canada reported that 967,000 children in this country still lived in low-income homes.