Your voice is needed! Participate in Government of Canada’s online consultation on building a pan-Canadian food policy. The deadline to participate is December 16th, 2022.
With the current economic conditions in Canada, the need for a comprehensive school food policy has never been greater. Many children go to school on empty stomachs and many families cannot reliably access sufficient nutritious foods. To address this important need, the Government of Canada’s Department of Employment and Social Development is proposing the development of a national school food policy to address the needs of students across the country.
Canadian families managing food allergy report higher rates of food insecurity compared to families who do not manage food allergy, and the rates of severe food insecurity have increased for these food allergy families since 2019.
This means that many Canadian families that manage food allergy are unable to purchase safe, nutritious foods. A comprehensive national school food policy may benefit children with food allergy in our schools.
The government is now gathering input into what priorities should be considered when implementing this policy. Your voice is needed to help ensure that accommodations for food allergy are included in any proposed national school food policy.
Here’s what you need to know:
The government’s goals for a pan-Canadian school food policy specifically address the need for all children to have access to safe, nutritious food and to reduce poverty and food insecurity. The themes that have been identified for this policy include:
- Improve access to school food and mitigate financial barriers
- Prevent stigma
- Enhance nutrition and promote lifelong healthy practices
- Ensure a flexible approach that leaves room for local adaptation
- Offer culturally appropriate programming that is mindful of dietary requirements
- Ensure accountability and governance
- Supporting local and sustainable food systems and economies
Food Allergy Canada supports these objectives and measures to help provide safe, nutritious food options for all children, including those impacted by food allergy.
Next steps: Participate in the consultation
You and all Canadians with food allergy an opportunity to have your voice heard for how food allergy may be managed within a school food policy. Please participate in this consultation.
Take these steps:
- Read the discussion paper.
- You are encouraged to read the discussion paper before completing the questionnaire. It provides background information on school food programs and possible guiding principles for a school food policy.
- Complete the consultation questionnaire by December 16, 2022.
- The questionnaire takes around 10-15 minutes to complete.
- Share this link with others in your community that would be interested in participating in this consultation