Debates of June 16th, 2022

Global Food Insecurity

[Anita Vandenbeld, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Development]

Mr. Chair, I want to thank my hon. colleague for Edmonton Strathcona for her dedicated commitment to this issue. I think we share a lot of the same commitment and passion for what really is an absolute crisis in the world.

One thing I would ask my colleague is about the $250 million a year figure she cited. I know the minister earlier pointed to $514 million just for this current crisis, plus the $100 million we are giving to the African Development Bank, but even last year there was $306 million given only to the World Food Programme. That does not include everything else we are doing in food assistance. Could she perhaps clarify the statistic there?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Chair, I will say that there have been additional promises made. As I said in my speech, I really do hope that it is urgently delivered and not just another promise, and that it is not going from one pot to another pot, because we have seen that in the past.

I will also say that I have asked for transparency on our dollars and on what has been spent, but I have not been given any of that information. As a parliamentarian, it is almost a point of privilege that I am not able to get the information I need to adequately assess what the Government of Canada has spent on food security and where we actually are at this point.

[Rachael Thomas, Conservative, Lethbridge, AB]

Mr. Chair, I believe the hon. member across the way has very much outlined the problem, and I agree with many of the points that she raised in that regard. She also drew attention to the fact that this is really about people, and I appreciate that, because I think we have to consider the human face.

The member also stated that we need more money to be contributed in order to help solve this problem, so my question is this: Where will the more money that is needed come from?

I do not believe that the member opposite has spoken about the importance of entrepreneurship, innovation, small business owners and industry within Canada, and getting that part of our economy back up and running so that we can have those individuals actually helping to fund these types of initiatives. Government does not have money of its own, so I am just curious: Where does it come from?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Chair, first of all, I would say that hunger is a choice and that this is something we do have the ability to solve, but the global community has not yet seen fit to do so.

One of the things that the New Democratic Party has put forward is a wealth tax. Right now, $6 billion would go a very long way to solving the global food crisis that we are experiencing. Elon Musk is worth $300 billion, so a wealth tax would be a really interesting way that we could actually start raising money to use for this.

I also talked in my speech about tying humanitarian aid to defence spending. We could lower our defence spending and increase our humanitarian aid, which I think would be another way.

We could take away oil and gas subsidies and use the money to subsidize farmers in Alberta, and also use it for the food crisis around the globe. That is another option that we could use, and there are many. I could go on, because I have a lot of other options.

[Gabriel Ste-Marie, Bloc, Joliette, QC]

Mr. Chair, I want to congratulate my colleague on her speech and commend her for her commitment to the cause. It is sincere.

I want to clarify something. When we refer to the price of agricultural inputs, even in the Canadian market, it is all in the perspective of global production and global prices. It is pretty clear that a people at risk of starvation is about as serious as it gets, despite all the other important issues they may face.

My colleague talked about the important commitment to allocate 0.7% of GDP to international aid and the fight against hunger. I completely agree with that commitment. I deplore the fact that the government, regardless of its political stripes, never meets it.

I wonder if the opposition parties would be able to pressure the government to commit to the 0.7%. Are these the kinds of concerns that could be included in a co-operation agreement with the government?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Chair, I must say the work that I have done for decades is to try to move both Conservative and Liberal governments further on this issue, and much of it was before I was elected as a member of Parliament.

It is the short-sightedness that really worries me about our global response, because when one is unwilling to contribute multilaterally in the short term, the long-term costs are massive. The long-term costs to Canada's reputation as a country are very difficult. We saw that when we tried for a UN Security Council seat. There is a reason that Canada was not able to get one. Canada is no longer respected in the world as playing a role that punches above its weight, which is sad, because it is something that we were very proud of, and should be very proud of as a country. We have that potential as a country.

I look at the things Pearson had promised. It was Lester B. Pearson who actually said that 0.7% is what every country should be contributing. We have never made it. Other countries have made it, and have been able to maintain it through economic ups and downs. Canada has never come close, and it is obscene, to be honest. We could do it. We have every ability to do it.

[Rachel Blaney, NDP, North Island—Powell River, BC]

Mr. Chair, I want to thank the member for her very impressive speech in the House today. I learn something from her every time she presents here.

One of the core messages I heard is that we have never gotten to the goal. I want her to explain that to the House. Despite Conservative and Liberal governments taking turns, why is it that we still, as Canadians, have never reached this commitment to make sure that we are supporting people across the world so they do not go hungry?

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Chair, I would like to thank my colleague for her question. It is a question that we all need to be grappling with. The sewing of a flag on a backpack is such a truly Canadian thing to do. We sew our flag on backpacks when we travel around the world, because we are so deeply proud of our contribution globally. However, right now in peacekeeping, which is something that Canada was known for, we have not met even a fraction of our promises. We have also not met a fraction of our promises on having a feminist foreign policy. None of that has happened.

I wish the government, whether it was Liberal or Conservative, had done more. Certainly once the NDP is in government, we will.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons (Senate)]

Mr. Chair, I really appreciated the member's intervention today, but I took a bit of an exception to one of the last comments the member made. She said that Canada does not punch above its weight and that is why it did not get a UN Security Council seat. I would encourage her to visit our troops participating in Operation Unifier and Operation Reassurance in eastern Europe and talk to the other countries on the ground there about whether Canada punches above its weight. I am sure she would hear a much different story than she indicated in the House.

I find that sometimes when I talk about global assistance and Canada playing its part in other parts of the world in helping to take care of people, inevitably a certain number of people come back and ask why we are not taking care of people at home first. They ask, “Should we not be taking care of everybody at home first before we start spending money in other parts of the world?”

I certainly disagree with the concept that we should not be participating in and contributing globally to these various programs, for the reason the member has been talking about: If we do not pay for them now, we will end up paying so much more later.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Mr. Chair, first of all, I will address the fact that the member's Prime Minister promised 600 peacekeeping troops would be deployed. We currently have 60. We are ranked the 70th country in peacekeeping around the world. I do not think we are punching above our weight, as we would like to do.

I think that realistically, as we are parliamentarians, we are meant to do what is best for the country. We are meant to be a multilateral force. The argument that we cannot play a role internationally because of our obligations domestically is a bit juvenile, to be honest.

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Chair, I will be sharing my time with the Minister of Northern Affairs this evening.

I am very pleased that colleagues in the House have called this take-note debate forward this evening, because the question of global food security as a result of the war in Ukraine is the most important question right now that we all collectively face.

I am very proud to be the chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food. We have started a global food security study because of what we are seeing around the world and because we have seen the explicit targeting, by the Russian Federation, of Ukrainian assets that feed not only Ukrainians but the whole world.

It is important to start by giving some context to how important Ukraine is in the global food conversation. It represents 47% of sunflower oil exports to the global market, between 10% to 12% of wheat exports to the global market, 18% of barley and a really high percentage of corn as well. Suffice it to say that not only is Ukraine the breadbasket of eastern Europe, but it is extremely important in the global food sense.

Another thing that is extremely important is that 50% of the World Food Programme's contributions toward vulnerable states come from Ukraine. As we start to stare down what is truly becoming a global food crisis because of the illegal invasion, because of the war, those countries are the most susceptible right now to being impacted. I commend all members of the House for bringing forward this discussion. It is important and extremely timely.

I want to give some other reflections, although this is a very short period of just five minutes for opening remarks on the take-note debate.

The committee had the chance to hear from Minister Solsky, essentially the minister of agriculture in Ukraine, about the fact that right now they are trying to plant on 80% of the territory that is not yet occupied by the Russian Federation. We heard from member of Parliament Yulia Klymenko that 13% of the arable land in question is being mined right now by the Russian Federation. As we can appreciate, the front line of this combat is fluctuating in eastern and southern Ukraine, and the Russian Federation has been planting mines. That is not going to be solved overnight. We heard from Ms. Klymenko herself that farmers have perished simply trying to harvest their crops and plant on their fields.

I had a conversation yesterday with the ambassador of Ukraine to Canada. She showed me a picture of the artillery shells in the fields in which the Ukrainians harvest not only for their own people, but indeed for the world. It needs to go on record explicitly that part of the Russian Federation's plan is to create destabilization around the world regarding food security and energy prices. We have to understand that some countries, particularly in the Horn of Africa and Southeast Asia, are reliant on the Russian and Ukrainian importation of food products. Those are the same countries that could fall and then create regional geopolitical challenges, with governments being overthrown, and this could be ripe for terrorism and extremism. That is the testimony we have heard.

I want to talk about what Canada can do in this, because that is the conversation we are having. We know that there is a global challenge. We know that countries are particularly vulnerable. Even though Canada is very food secure generally, we are seeing a huge rise in prices at the supermarket because of some of the import costs as a result of the war. Canada has played and will continue to play an important role in this domain.

Some 22 million tonnes of grain product is sitting right now in silos in Ukraine, but it is not able to be moved because of the blockade in the Black Sea. The challenge in 2022, of course, is that as the harvest comes off the field, what do they do with that grain? It is important that we provide temporary storage. I know the Ukrainian government is looking to Canada to work to try to provide storage on the western border with Poland. That is extremely important.

We also need to make sure that farmers in Ukraine have the capacity to continue their work. For those who are not in occupied territories, we have to be doing everything we can to help. There is a conversation around what type of equipment we can provide for demining some of the agriculture fields. What technical expertise can Canada offer? I think that is an important conversation.

Of course, there is the trade corridor. Conversations are happening right now with the United Nations, Turkey and Russia. What can we do to provide a NATO solution as well to create those corridors?

To finish up, there is also a role we can play in Canadian production over the next couple of years, because this is not just a 2022 issue. We need to help produce more so we can help provide for the global market.

I wish I had more time, but I look forward to taking questions from my hon. colleagues.

[Dave Epp, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON]

Mr. Chair, would my colleague agree with the statement that world hunger is being induced by two causes? The one we think of right now is the lack of availability of food and the situation in Ukraine causing or exacerbating that, but the second thing that is causing hunger around the world, particularly in the global south, is simply the cost of food. It is becoming unaffordable in so many places.

I wonder if he has a comment on that dynamic.

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Chair, I would like to thank the member for Chatham-Kent—Leamington for his work on the agriculture committee. We have a great group that has really kept a strong focus on the needs of Canadian farmers and indeed on the conversation we are having today regarding farmers around the world.

He is absolutely right that it is not only a production challenge. However, the reality is that there is a certain scarcity right now because of how important Ukraine is, and this is driving up food prices around the world. We are seeing that in Canada. We have more of a propensity to pay, as one of the richest countries in the world, but those vulnerable countries are going to really struggle.

We have heard this from international humanitarian groups that are seeking additional funding so they can provide money. That is important, but we also need to make sure there is adequate production and availability of product so that we are able to contribute to the countries that are most food insecure.

[Yves Perron, Bloc, Berthier—Maskinongé, QC]

Mr. Chair, I thank my committee chair for his speech. We agree on many things when it comes to international action, but I would like to hear his thoughts on local production.

I think that Canada will be called upon to play a key role in the global food supply in the coming months and years. Before we look after others, however, we need to look after ourselves.

For some time now, we have been bringing up that infamous 35% surtax imposed on fertilizer orders that were made and paid for before the conflict began. Government members claim to understand the situation and say that they are looking for a solution, but days, weeks and months have gone by without a response. Does my colleague have an answer for us tonight?

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Chair, indeed, Canada's domestic capacity is absolutely important. I was very happy to see the Nutrien fertilizer company announce that it would increase production by 25%. In addition, the Government of Canada announced assistance for the BHP mining company in Saskatchewan to open the largest potash mine in the world.

Other countries must also increase capacity. It is very important for the department's international development services to help increase the capacity of our allies, especially in Africa and Asia.

The government believes it is very important to find a solution to help farmers with the tariffs imposed on March 2 on fertilizer orders made before the start of the war in Ukraine.

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Chair, we are in a really disturbing time, because all the myths of globalization have been blown apart. We saw it happen during COVID. Supply chain networks, access to PPE and the ability to supply our own communities were severely hampered. We are now seeing Putin use food as a weapon of war, threatening possible mass hunger. We are also seeing supply chain issues from the climate crisis. I was speaking earlier about the crisis of the Colorado River. It supplies a lot of agricultural support to the southern United States, which feeds world markets.

I want to ask my colleague about the bigger question of whether or not the government is looking at how we deal with supply issues and how we deal with instability in a world where globalization is falling apart and we have war criminals like Putin using food as a hunger weapon. Our old systems are not working. What is the government looking at in terms of a new strategy to get Canada secure and help the world be more secure?

[Kody Blois, Liberal, Kings—Hants, NS]

Mr. Chair, that was a big question, so please permit me just a moment.

On globalization, Canada is a world food provider. We cannot turn away from that. That is a reality. I think we have to look out both ends of the telescope. We need to build domestic capacity in Canada through local food infrastructure to help support, perhaps, import substitution, and Canada still needs to play a global role.

As it relates to food and war, my hon. colleague is absolutely correct. Russia right now is playing from the old playbook, trying to target a country's capacity to feed itself and feed the world. It is creating havoc. It is driving a conversation here domestically.

We need to continue to support Ukraine in its fight for all of us, because this is a playbook of the Russian Federation to try to create disruption in western countries that are committed to international rules-based order.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

Before we go any further, I want to wish my friend from Kings—Hants a happy wedding. I do not know if it is this weekend or next weekend, but pretty soon he will be getting married. We will do this in the House while we can.

Resuming debate, the hon. Minister of Northern Affairs.

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Minister of Northern Affairs]

Mr. Chair, it is a pleasure to stand in this chamber.

It is always an honour to rise on behalf of my constituents in Saint Boniface—Saint Vital.

With one of the world's leading grain producers in crisis, the world is looking to Canada to step up. Our world-class agriculture and agri-food industry is a major driver of food security in over 200 countries around the world. Last year, despite the challenges of the pandemic, our agri-food exports topped $82 billion to 204 countries and territories.

Farmers need tools and support to keep their businesses strong so they can feed Canada and they can feed the world. We have committed to farmers getting them there. Right now farmers are facing shortages and higher costs for their inputs, particularly fertilizer and fuel, due to the disruption of supply chains caused by the conflict in Ukraine. Fertilizer is absolutely vital to Canadian farmers to grow their crops and to feed the world. We are working with governments, provinces and industry partners to ensure that farmers have access to fertilizer for Canada to do its part during this time of global food insecurity.

As well as a leading food producer, Canada is also the world's single-largest producer and exporter of potash fertilizer. We are putting money towards making the largest potash-producing mine in the world one of the greenest. On Monday, my colleagues, the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, as well as the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food announced $100 million in federal support to ensure a new potash mine in Jansen, Saskatchewan, is sustainable. Our support for this innovative project is a long-term investment for global food security and environmental sustainability, and it will ensure Canada's position as a leading exporter of potash.

During the pandemic, we introduced a number of measures to ensure the supply chain worked as effectively as possible, including support for farmers and food processors to invest in safety protocols to keep their farms and plants running. We are also working to strengthen our trade corridors so our farmers can get their world-class products to their global customers on time.

To maximize our trade opportunities, we have worked hard to diversify our trade through agreements with key trading partners, including the European Union, North America and the countries of the trans-Pacific.

However, ensuring global food security starts right here at home. Everyone deserves access to healthy, affordable and perishable food options. During the pandemic, our government worked with partners to deliver important supports to food banks, community food programs and food baskets in indigenous and northern communities, redirecting supplies of food to remote communities to ensure no food went to waste, as well as investments in food infrastructure.

At the start of the pandemic, our government acted quickly, injecting $25 million into nutrition north Canada. Not only did this make food more affordable in the north, but additional items were added to the subsidy list. Our government also introduced the harvesters support grant, which increases access to country foods by providing funding to support traditional hunting in the north, harvesting and food sharing in 108 isolated northern communities. It recognizes the importance of traditions, as well as hunting, harvesting and food sharing, to the health and well-being of indigenous people and communities.

No single department, organization or initiative has the capacity to address the issue of food security on its own, as the root cause of food insecurity is poverty.

Our government is working directly with partners to address food security in the north and Arctic through a whole-of-government approach that includes working with provinces, territories and indigenous leadership and communities. The best way to strengthen global food security is to support the hard-working individuals producing the world's food and to work with local communities in partnership to address needs here at home and abroad. That is exactly what we are doing.

[John Barlow, Conservative, Foothills, AB]

Mr. Chair, the minister talked in his speech about the importance of fertilizer. Not only is it access to fertilizer, but I think the other issue about fertilizer is affordability. We have seen the cost of fertilizer in many parts of the country go up 100%.

Canada is the only G7 country on the planet that is charging a 35% tariff on Russian fertilizer. Many times we have asked the Liberal government to exempt that tariff on fertilizer purchased before March 2. We now know that this tariff is costing Canadian farmers about $150 million a year.

The minister just mentioned that the government gave $100 million to the largest mining company on the planet when they have record fertilizer revenues, not to make increased production at this fertilizer plant near Saskatoon but to ensure that it uses electric vehicles. Would he not agree that a better use of that $100 million would be to provide compensation to farmers for their own fertilizer tariff?

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Mr. Chair, I want to say first of all that it is incredibly important that we are having this debate today.

I can speak for the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. Her department is actively engaged not only with provinces across the west, but with the farmers and industry partners to ensure that farmers have access to fertilizer for Canada to do its part during this very difficult period of global food and security.

With respect to the BHP Jansen mine announcement in Saskatchewan this week, this will be the largest potash mine in the world. We make absolutely no apologies for doing our part in working with industry. This will ensure potash not only for the medium term but for the long term, and will ensure that Canada will be an actual leading producer for generations to come, creating absolutely hundreds of jobs in the process.

[Julie Vignola, Bloc, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Mr. Chair, a few moments ago, I was speaking about the importance of teaching a person to fish. I used to live in the near-northern town of Fermont, which did not have road access until 1984. I know and remember very well how expensive food can be, such as a $15 salad. Even a $25 million investment to help communities even farther north than Fermont, which is after all only on the 52nd parallel, is a band-aid solution.

What steps does the government plan to take and what measures will it implement in order to help communities access reasonably priced, healthy food?

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Mr. Chair, the $25 million that I spoke about was an investment from the middle of the pandemic. In budget 2021, we increased the budget by $163 million for a series of initiatives to address food security in the north, which is very important.

We know that everything is more expensive for remote communities. There are no access roads or transportation. That is why we are also investing in building better infrastructure, roads and different ways to encourage transportation so that these communities can better look after their food needs.

It is going to take more than just one department to make this change happen. It will require initiative from the entire government and all levels of government, including indigenous governments. That is our initiative, and we will continue to find partners to address this serious issue.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

Here is where I give my reminder to everyone that the quicker we can ask questions and answer questions, the more people can participate in the debate as we go along.

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Chatham-Kent—Leamington.

[Dave Epp, Conservative, Chatham-Kent—Leamington, ON]

Mr. Chair, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Regina—Lewvan.

I wish I were speaking more about Canadian food security this evening than speaking about global food insecurity.

Prior to being elected, I farmed for most of my life. I have spent a lot of time in agricultural organizations and I also worked with an internationally focused NGO. It has been mentioned here tonight, the Canadian Foodgrains Bank, which deals with hunger, and so, with that background, I have spent a lot of time working for food and talking and thinking about it.

If I had to title my remarks today, I would title them with the axiom that we hear at the farm, “nothing cures high prices like high prices”, and its corollary, “nothing cures low prices like low prices”. Ag pundits often cite this expression when they are talking describing volatile agricultural markets, but we might ask ourselves what this has to do with global food insecurity and why should Canadians care.

Embedded in that expression actually lies one of the solutions to this crisis that we are facing, albeit it is a bit more of a longer-term solution, but respecting and understanding market dynamics is something we all need to collectively do. This works if governments and we collectively respect how markets work. High prices of anything, food and any product, encourage more production and increase supply. Low prices encourage demand and eventually high prices. I will come back to this in a moment but with the corollary that governments understand this dynamic.

Let me speak for a second to why Canadians should care. Obviously, we are all experiencing increasing grocery prices and grocery food. Canada is a rich country. On average, we spend about 10% of our disposable income on the cost of food, which is much lower than in many parts of the world. However, the vulnerable in our own society feel the brunt more than many of us.

We know that many problems do not respect international borders. We are dealing with greenhouse gases and climate. That does not respect the border. As we have learned, travel mandates and things like that have not slowed the spread of COVID-19. So too the effects of global hunger in other parts of the world will affect us.

I am reminded that World War II was not declared in 1939 when Hitler crossed boundaries into Poland and Czechoslovakia. World War II came from a conflation of various regional conflicts. Whenever in any part of the world a population's average caloric daily intake falls below 1,800 calories, there is civil unrest, food riots, hunger, all sorts of other problems. Let us think back to the Arab Spring.

It is important to put a few stats on the record. Global food hunger was actually decreasing through 2014. It has been mentioned that conflict around the world has actually been driving those numbers up. It was down to under 600 million people. The latest figures put it at over 800 million, with 50 million people actually facing acute starvation. There are two issues. As I mentioned in a question earlier, the price and availability of food require both short-term and longer-term responses.

To address food instability, food needs to be available. My former employer worked in this space. Certainly, in a short-term response, we do need to supply cash. The Canadian Foodgrains Bank led Canada to delinking our food aid back in 2008, which is a good thing, but what we need to do far more is to drive the cost of food down as well.

For that, our Canadian agriculture needs all of the tools at its disposal, certainly fertilizer and access to fertilizer. Restrictions on the use needs to be balanced with our environmental responsibility, but we cannot be putting policies in place today that impact Canadians' ability to produce food.

The carbon tax has been talked about as well. As I said, high prices cure high prices. More supply is attracted by high prices. For the world's poor, we absolutely need to put more food onto the market, which will lower the cost, which is the second possibility.

Let us put our collective efforts toward those aims.