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441-02378 (Social affairs and equality)
Petition to The Minister of Finance, the Minister of Families, Children, and Social Development, and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
WHEREAS:
- School food programs are recognized around the world as essential to the health, well-being and education of students with over 388 million children in at least 161 countries receiving free or subsidized school meals at school;
- New data from Statistics Canada (2022) indicates 1 in 4 children in Canada lives in a food-insecure household;
- Canada is the only G7 country without a national school food program; and
- Budget 2022 reaffirmed the December 2021 mandate letter commitments for the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food by directing them to work with provinces, territories, municipalities, Indigenous partners, and stakeholders to develop a National School Food Policy and to explore how more Canadian children can receive nutritious food at school, and public consultations took place through November - December 2022.
We, the undersigned, members of the Pathways to Education community and residents of the Kingston, Frontenac and Lennox and Addington region, call upon the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Families, Children, and Social Development, and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food to prioritize funding for a National School Food Program through Budget 2024 for implementation in schools by Fall 2024.
Response by the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development
Signed by (Minister or Parliamentary Secretary): Élisabeth Brière
The Government of Canada is committed to giving children the best possible start in life. A key part of this is making sure that children have the healthy food they need to grow, play and learn.
On April 1, 2024, the Prime Minister announced a new National School Food Program. With an investment of $1 billion over five years included in Budget 2024, the new Program will help provinces, territories, and Indigenous partners expand their existing school food programs and could help feed up to 400,000 more kids every year.
Progress to date on developing a policy and program were based on extensive engagement with a broad range of stakeholders from across Canada, including through bilateral conversations and roundtables, and an online questionnaire seeking the views of Canadians. The Minister of Families, Children and Social Development has also visited schools offering school food programs and met with stakeholders in many communities across Canada.
Through these engagement activities, stakeholders highlighted that school meal programs can have multiple social, health, environmental and economic benefits and can play a role in increasing access to nutritious and culturally appropriate food for children, especially those from low-income or food insecure households.
On October 31, 2023, the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development and the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food released a What We Heard Report that summarizes the views that were shared during these engagements on a National School Food Policy.
The National School Food Program will complement other recent actions to make life more affordable for Canadians, including other initiatives announced in Budget 2024 in areas like housing, pharmacare and targeted income supplements for key groups of Canadians. It also aligns well with other Government of Canada initiatives to support the health and well-being of young people in Canada more broadly.
- Presented to the House of Commons
-
Mark Gerretsen
(Kingston and the Islands)
April 18, 2024 (Petition No. 441-02378) - Government response tabled
- May 29, 2024
Only validated signatures are counted towards the total number of signatures.