Canadian farm groups will celebrate Food Freedom Day Sat. , Feb. 12, marking the calendar date by which the average Canadian will have earned enough to pay the entire year’s grocery bill.
“Canadian farmers are proud of their role in providing high-quality food produced to top-level food safety, environmental, and animal-welfare standards,” said CFA president Ron Bonnett.
The date for Food Freedom Day is derived through a simple calculation compar ing Canadians’ disposable income and the amount they spent on food (including alcoholic beverages) during the previous year. It is a general look forward on food prices, based on the previous year’s spending statistics. In 2010, the average Canadian spent approximately 11.9 per cent of personal disposable income on food.
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Food Freedom Day demonstrates the value that Canadian farmers deliver to all Canadians – not only through quality food, but by supporting one in eight jobs, which in turn translates into vital economic con-t ributions for our rural communities.
“We encourage Canadians to choose Canadian food as often as possible, as these purchases represent far more than just food. They strengthen our vibrant, homegrown agriculture sector and benefit the country as a whole,” said Bonnett.
In terms of product variety and price, Canadian food purchases have changed drastically in the last 30 years. Many food items are now ready-to-eat, value-added products. In spite of this, total spending on food has only seen modest increases.
