Response to federal funding announcement to strengthen northern communities

Press Release

February 20, 2026

Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre and Right To Food welcome yesterday’s federal announcement as an important step in addressing food insecurity in Inuit communities, particularly renewed investments in the Inuit Child First Initiative and community-led food programs. These measures recognize that Inuit communities must be at the centre of solutions to northern food insecurity.

In 2022, more than three-quarters of Inuit children in Inuit Nunangat experienced food insecurity, according to Statistics Canada. This is not the result of short-term pressures or income inequality alone. It is rooted in centuries of colonial policies that undermine Indigenous food systems and entrench structural inequities — alongside persistent income insecurity and high food costs. Structural reform is required to develop lasting solutions.

We are encouraged by the $115 million commitment to renew funding for the Inuit Child First Initiative (ICFI) until March 31, 2027. Assuming the funding can be used once again towards grocery vouchers, this support will bring some relief while Canada and Inuit partners continue to co-develop an Inuit-led, long-term approach that advances food security, self-determination, and community well-being.

When the ICFI voucher funding ended in April 2025, Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre saw the number of meals served each day reverse its downward trend — rising from fewer than 200 meals per day to around 400 by October 2025, with a record high 639 meals on September 17, 2025. This shift highlights the clear and immediate impact that direct income supports have on community food security.

“As we highlighted at our emergency press conference last fall, research — including analyses we conducted with Dr. Sappho Gilbert, of the Harvard H.T. Chan School of Public Health — showed that direct income supports such as the Inuit Child First Initiative had a meaningful impact on community food security” said Joseph Murdoch-Flowers, Executive Director of Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre.

“When families receive direct income support, studies show grocery spending significantly rises on the day of distribution and community reliance on our daily meal service significantly decreases for an entire week. That tells us something important: when income supports are accessible and timely, they work.”

The additional $30 million for Nutrition North Canada acknowledges the high cost of food in isolated northern communities. At the same time, the program does not meaningfully support the development of culturally appropriate, local food economies in Inuit communities, instead prioritizing subsidized foods shipped from southern Canada. Long-term food security requires investment not only in retail subsidies, but in Inuit-led food systems and harvesting economies.

Investments in the Northern Isolated Community Initiatives Fund begin to address this gap by supporting local organizations, groups and innovators to locally hunt, source, distribute, and grow food. Inuit-led organizations such as Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre demonstrate how community-rooted approaches strengthen food sovereignty and resilience. Inuit leadership must remain central to long-term solutions.

These investments are a necessary step forward, but food insecurity in Inuit communities is systemic. It requires durable government commitments across income security, infrastructure, housing, and Indigenous self-determination. Short-term announcements must evolve into permanent, rights-based policy solutions.

Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre and Right To Food stand ready to engage alongside Inuit partners and all governments to advance long-term solutions that recognize access to adequate food as a fundamental human right.

Media Contacts

Thomas Rohner – thomas@qajuqturvik.ca
Hani Ramadhani – hani@righttofood.ca

IHT5