Mar 22, 2024 - 19:43
By cbc.ca

A national school food framework is on Chrystia Freeland's desk. Will Ottawa say yes?

A framework for a national school food program has landed on the desk of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, and with the federal budget just weeks away advocates hope the proposal will get the green light.

The proposed plan comes as food prices continue to cause political headaches for governments across the country, said Tyler Meredith, a policy thinker and former economic adviser to Freeland and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

«A proposal has now been put forward to Minister Freeland, and it's now for us to watch whether it'll be funded in the budget,» said Meredith. «I'm cautiously optimistic.»

The federal government consulted with provinces, territories, municipalities, Indigenous groups and other stakeholders to come up with the framework over the past year.

The Liberal government has long promised to move in this direction, and Trudeau campaigned on it during his re-election campaign in 2021, promising to put $1 billion over five years toward such a program.

That money is urgently needed, community food groups argue, as Canadians increasingly struggle to put food on the table and many families find themselves in food bank lineups.

«It would help to meaningfully address something that many families are dealing with, which is both the high cost of food and also frankly the significant time and effort that is required in preparing lunches for kids,» Meredith said.

Freeland wouldn't comment on the plan that's currently before her. A spokesperson for her office said the 2024 budget expected on April 16 will focus on making life affordable, building homes and creating jobs.