Canadians could eat better.
For most, it’s a matter of not making the right nutritional choices.
For some, it’s about lacking the means to do so.
Canada’s 2016 Food Report Card was unveiled at the Food and Drink Summit in Toronto Nov. 28, where the associate director of the Conference Board of Canada touched on some of the highlights.
“We do have some influence with government and we hope this will lead to greater action,” John-Charles Le Valleé said.
Not only do most Canadians eat too much, they’re out of shape. Only one in five Canadians meet the physical exercise guidelines set out by the Canadian Society of Exercise Physiology.
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On top of that, far too much food is wasted.
“It’s a massive issue. We over consume calories. We over purchase calories,” Le Valleé said.
“We prepare too much food and we don’t understand the issues surrounding it.”
For most, the right choices are well within reach but for at least four million Canadians, food insecurity is an issue.
Nunavut, by far, has the greatest level of food insecurity. More than 25 percent of people 12 years of age or older fell into the category in the territory. In most provinces, food insecurity has been hovering around seven percent.
Food security also varies according to demographics. Single parent households and indigenous people are far more likely to be food insecure. Nunavut again stood out in the statistics with about half the indigenous population considered to be moderately or severely food insecure.
Le Valleé also touched on the choices Canadians make.
Canadians, on average, are consuming too few fruits and vegetables and too little fish and seafood. We are not getting enough vitamin A, vitamin D and calcium on average. With iron, consumption rates for men are adequate but are deficient for women.
Canadians, on average, consume far too much saturated fat, except for in Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador. Quebeckers had the worst rating.
We’re consuming too much salt throughout Canada, with the per capita consumption in all provinces exceeding the recommended teaspoon of table salt per day. Average consumption tended to be lower in Ontario and Newfoundland and higher in British Columbia and Quebec.
When it comes to diet-related health conditions, Newfoundland is in the unenviable position of having the worst or near worst ranking in all categories: Type 2 diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, hypertension, gastrointestinal disease and alcohol over-consumption.
While people can make the wrong choices no matter how well they’re informed, Le Valleé said the level of food literacy in Canada is relatively low.
According to another speaker at the summit, Dr. Elaine Chin, Canada’s nutritional recommendations could be better. Chin prefers the recommendations from the Harvard School of Public Health.
Canada’s Food Guide recommends the regular intake of dairy products or alternatives. Harvard suggests consumers consider “looking beyond” dairy as a source of calcium. In addition, Harvard recommends that red meat be consumed sparingly in favour of fish, poultry, beans and nuts while Canada’s Food Guide doesn’t make the distinction.
Le Valleé said Canada received an A rating for food safety, B ratings for the healthfulness of food and household food security, a B-minus for industry prosperity and a C-plus for environmental sustainability.
