We are all talking about it, and now there is even more data to back up our kvetching 鈥� it is more costly to eat well here than in other places in B.C.
The BC Centre for Disease Control recently published the
Data was collected for the 61 food items based on the during the last week of May and the first week of June 2022.
The report determined the average monthly cost of a nutritious food basket 鈥� consisting of vegetables and fruits, protein, grains, oils and fats 鈥� for a family of four.
The average cost for a healthy diet in B.C. was $1,263 per month 鈥� unless you live in our region.
Our region of North Shore/Coast Garibaldi is the second costliest location in the province at $1,379 per month, second only to South Vancouver Island, where it costs $1,386.
This isn鈥檛 a 撸奶社区thing, to be clear. Our region includes the North Shore, Sea to Sky Corridor and the Sunshine Coast areas of Gibsons, Sechelt, and Powell River. But being in the same boat as our neighbours on this is likely cold comfort for residents trying to make ends meet.
As the report notes, the high cost of groceries impacts vulnerable low-income folks the most.
For example, even using the B.C. average food cost per month, a single young man on disability assistance would be in the hole about $210 each month to eat a healthy diet, assuming he gets $1,421 in assistance a month and pays about $1,150 for housing.
He would need $481 per month to eat well, the report states. Clearly, it wouldn鈥檛 add up, so something would have to give. Given the cost of housing these days, it would likely be the food budget.
The BCCDC points to a litany of bad stuff that can happen to us if our diet is lacking. Everything from chronic physical and mental health problems to infectious and noncommunicable diseases can result. Those who don鈥檛 eat well 鈥渁re also more likely to experience negative disease outcomes, be hospitalized and die prematurely.鈥�
The report cites higher incomes as the only permanent way to combat food insecurity.
Vital charities that fill the gap, such as food banks and other forms of emergency food sourcing, 鈥減rovide temporary relief鈥� to some, but only a small percentage of households access such services, the report notes. Other solutions like community gardens aren鈥檛 done at a big enough scale to help all those in need.
鈥淩esearch shows that the strongest predictor of household food insecurity is not food prices, but inadequate incomes. Addressing household food insecurity requires policy action to increase incomes so that everyone can afford to eat a nutritious diet that supports health and overall well-being, the report states.
Indeed. A healthy diet shouldn鈥檛 be a luxury only some can afford.
