Good afternoon. Thank you for inviting us here. It is an honour to appear before our elected representatives from all political parties.
I speak today on behalf of Food Secure Canada, which is a coalition of organizations and individuals concerned about our food system in Canada. We have three overarching goals: zero hunger, healthy and safe food for all, and a sustainable food system.
We have quite a large menu of options we'd like to see in terms of federal policy. Notably, we're calling for a national food strategy, something that all political parties agreed with in the last election, and which we've elaborated in “Resetting the Table: A People's Food Policy for Canada”. I've submitted copies of that on the table and also more detailed comments than what I'll be able to say in the five minutes I have before me.
I really want to concentrate my comments on one big recommendation, even though there are many other things we'd like to see in the budget.
We’ve just come out of our biennial conference in Edmonton. Some 300 people from across the country gathered and came out with a resounding consensus that the most important policy reform we could undertake immediately would be the institution of a visionary national student nutrition program. That's what I'm here to argue for today.
Perhaps Dr. David Butler-Jones, Chief Public Health Officer of Canada, said it well. Over half of students go to school without breakfast in the morning. The consequences of that are quite severe. As he says:
When children go to school hungry or poorly nourished, their energy levels, memory, problem-solving skills, creativity, concentration and behaviour are all negatively impacted.
In fact, what we're calling for today is investment in the better health, the better learning, the higher grades, and better economic returns that will come from a healthy, nutritious snack for all primary and secondary schools in Canada. I'm not calling for some big, heavy, bureaucratic top-down program by the federal government. What I'm asking you to do is to contribute to the amazing array of grassroots community initiatives already going on in breakfast programs and snack programs across this country.
In fact, what we're calling for is for the federal government to assume 20% of the costs of what's already going on. The other 80% of the expenses of this program are assumed by parents and community organizations, by the private sector, and by the municipalities, the provinces, and the territories across this country.
I know this is the finance committee and this is the pre-budget consultation. To cut to the chase: what will it cost? We figure that 20% of the contribution would cost roughly $540 million if we were to institute the full program right away. We're suggesting that we phase it in, that it be bottom up, and that we target the support in those communities where there's the most capacity and the greatest need. We'd argue that this would represent a very wise investment in our future, in our children. It will reduce long-term health care costs. It will improve learning.
I know it's a tight fiscal environment, and it's tough for everybody to think of making these new programs, but Canada is one of the very few developed countries in the world that has no federal nutrition program. There are innovative ways we could finance such a program as well. Annually in this country we consume 3.5 billion litres of sugar-sweetened beverages. A five-cent tax on every litre consumed would adequately cover the first year of such a program, a little bit under $200 million.
My plea to you today, on this International Day of the Child, is to think very carefully about the consequences of kids not learning properly because they're going to school hungry or they're being badly fed. We can support local economies, we can improve their health, we can reduce chronic diseases. It just makes sense. It's a smart thing to do, and I'd ask you to consider that when you identify the priorities for this government as it goes towards the 2013 budget.
Thank you very much for your attention. We're very pleased to have this opportunity to suggest this to you.