Most Inuit adults make less than $20,000 a year. Many families cannot afford food from day to day. In, Nunavut, this 12-pack of pop is $82.49. In Ontario, this same 12-pack would usually be less than $5.00.
Credit: "Feeding my Family" Facebook Group
Ever imagine a case of water being over $100? A case of pop over $80? A cooked chicken priced at $65? Welcome to Nunavut, population 31,906 as of the 2011 census. Families are starving in the territory because of these high food prices. They simply cannot afford the most simplest foods. A box of pizza pockets is over $20, a loaf of bread over $15. Wages may be higher than they are in Ontario, but still, about half of Nunavut's working adults make less than $20,000 every year.
The citizens are growing uneasy, many of them blaming the "evil" federal government and specifically the Conservatives for their troubles. A Facebook group called "Feeding my Family" is documenting the cost of food across the territory, with members uploading pictures of price tags on the shelves of their local grocery stores. The group has over 10,000 members, about a third of the population of Nunavut.
The Inuit people are planning protests at their grocery stores and there will be a protest in Ottawa today to draw attention to the problem. Organizers are hoping that the federal government can send more help, more supplies, more money, up north.
