On the internet, social media and newspapers there is so much coverage about food prices in Northern Canada. At Christmas I even saw a graphic on social media that posted the price of a turkey in various locations throughout the Yukon, NWT and Nunavut. Interesting to say the least. I am also forever listening to people complain about the price of food in Inuvik; some of it I think is warranted and some of it is just simply complaining. When I hear of people complaining about the price of watermelon in Inuvik in January, this is not legit complaining as #1 you shouldn't be buying watermelon in January (carbon foot print!) and #2 the fact that you can even access watermelon in Inuvik in January is a small miracle in itself!
So here is what I believe:
- You can easily access whole food and healthy food 12 months of the year in Inuvik.
- That if you buy foods according to each season and if you limit processed foods than food costs can be reasonable.
- That if you limit yourself to a medium level of simplicity in cooking/meal planning/consumption (no watermelon in January and not eating steak and lobster dinners), food costs can also be reasonable.
- For those fortunate enough to receive a Northern Allowance or other allowances with their jobs, people are indeed compensated for possible additional food costs incurred.
Many people will disagree but this is what I believe. So my plan for the next year is to blog about availability and price of food in Inuvik and see if what I track actuals backs up these beliefs!
For those people new to Inuvik (small, remote community) these are my tips that I tell them about food availability and costs:
- Buy local as much as possible.
- Limit your food needs/tastes. Example: You may not be cooking really specific recipes or ethnic recipes that you may have cooked in a city/down south.
- Keep a good selection of dry goods and condiments stocked up in your cupboards. Example: quinoa, rice, canned beans, lentils, couscous, canned veggies, etc.
- Drink UHT, soy milk, almond milk, etc instead of cow's milk.
- Preserve or freeze local meat and veggies as much as you can each season (fishing, hunting, berrypicking, garden, greenhouse, etc).
- Do a meat order some how/some way. This might be from the local reindeer herd, from a butcher down south or a meat pack from a local grocery store.
- Buy 50% expired food as much as possible. Freeze it if need be! its the only way I buy chicken in Inuvik!
Experiment #1: Comparing Food Prices
Two curiosities.
A) I am curious if food prices vary from grocery store to grocery store in Inuvik and I want the actual documentation and proof of this. Not just anecdotes from loyal customers. So here is a copy of my basic grocery shop at Stanton's from January 6, 2017 (middle of winter, storm day, Dempster Highway has been closed a lot). The only thing not available was cow's milk for my mom! I will do the same grocery shop/list soon from northern store and the local convenience store.
B) I am also curious if food prices are drastically different from summer to winter. So here is my proof of winter prices. Normally I would not buy blueberries or avocadoes in January but I know I will be buying them in the summer. I will have to see if there is actually a price difference in these items season to season.
This grocery list also shows what my basic food consumption is. Sure I buy chips, snacks, pop, etc each week but this is a basic supply of what I eat/consume regularly.
- avocadoes
- green onions
- carrots
- squash
- almond milk
- canned tomatoe sauce
- canned beans
- lettuce
- peppers
- tomatoes
- feta cheese
- seeds/nuts (pumpkin seeds)
- condiment (honey)
- eggs
- ground turkey (frozen)
- ground beef (frozen)
- blueberries
- strawberries (frozen for protein shakes)
Yes, all these foods were available and looking to be in good condition as Stanton's today. I was impressed by this. The only product not available was cow's milk. I checked at 2 places and nothing except 50% chocolate milk was available.
Happy shopping, cooking and eating! I am looking forward to see what I find by tracking all of this in 2017 in Inuvik.
S.
