ANTH 436 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Nunavik, Orange Juice, Food Sovereignty
23 May 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
4/5/2018
Presentation: Inuit Food Autonomy Practices in Nunavik
background
• ⅓ of the landmass of Quebec
• forced relocation from Nunavik to the high arctic
o promised there would be an abundance of animals and plants; completely
different climatic conditions
o 1990s: gvt offer $10 million to families affected by this relocation; 2010 issue
a formal apology
o a way to assert Canadian sovereignty in the high arctic during the Cold War
• 60% of people are less than 30 years old
o life expectancy = 66
• 1970s
o schools -- up until 3rd grade, students taught in Inuktitut
• mixed economy
o wage income
o subsistence hunting
• food autonomy and food sovereignty
o hunting practices and being on the land
overview of country food and hunting practices
• country food: food from the land, from hunting
o critical source of vitamins and minerals
o cultural connection
▪ tying people back to land
• traditional food can be seen as medicinal
o e.g. drinking seal blood for stronger blood
dependence on southern food: Current Inuit Issues and Alternatives
• high prices of food in the north
o $600/week in groceries
o Orange juice = $26
• Nutrition North -- federal supply chain branch form Ottawa
o subsidize “healthy food”
▪ not necessarily culturally relevant
• Inuit led projects or food autonomy
o arctic chickens
o community greenhouses
o not necessarily traditional foods, but they are still autonomous foods
Beluga whales in Nunavik
• hunting = mutual relationship of respect and trust
o respect expressed through being generous with the harvest
▪ food sharing -- social subsistence practice
▪ key in facilitating knowledge transmission
• use all parts of the whale as food
• 1850-1900 Hudson Bay company commercially harvest beluga whales
o impact the population of whales
• hunting restrictions
o loses meaning of food sharing
o history of continued decreasing of the quotas
o face of cooperation and consultation -- but not really
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