Speaking Notes for the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq Minister of Health - Eat Well Campaign

Monday, March 4, 2013
Ottawa, ON

Check Against Delivery

Good morning.

I would like to begin by thanking David Wilkes from theRetail Council of Canada, Marie-France Gibson of Metro Brands Division, and Terry Dean from the Heart and Stroke Foundation for joining me today.

We know that Canadians are living longer than ever before but the question is: are they living better?

While there are a number of factors to consider when answering this question, the obesity rate in this country is a strong indicator that we could all benefit from leading healthier lives.

Physical activity and good nutrition are important contributors to a healthy lifestyle.  However, many Canadians are consistently making unhealthy food choices while not engaging in enough exercise.

This may lead to an increased number of overweight and obese children and adults in this country. And it's why all levels of government and non governmental organizations are encouraging Canadians to make healthier choices when it comes to their diet.

Our government is doing its part by continuing to provide leadership on healthy living initiatives, nutrition and physical activity. We're also leading a national dialogue on healthy weights and are working with provinces and territories and other sectors to help curb childhood obesity.

Given that we are at the start of the Dietitians of Canada's annual nutrition month, I think that it's particularly appropriate that we're talking today about helping Canadians make healthy food choices.

Today, I'm pleased to announce that we're building on the momentum of the national Eat Well campaign that helps parents and children adopt healthier eating habits.

This campaign will use creative ways to educate parents about healthy eating.  We've already partnered with several media groups to encourage parents and caregivers to make more informed choices when it comes to feeding their children.

To further extend the reach of this campaign we've also partnered with the Retail Council of Canada, the Canadian Federation of Independent Grocers, Food and Consumer Products of Canada, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Dietitians of Canada and other organizations to promote healthy eating.  In many grocery stores across Canada, you'll see healthy eating messages, such as the one to my left. [Point to visual display]

The Eat Well campaign provides practical and easy-to-use tips that will help busy parents make small changes in their day-to-day lives.  Changes such as eating more vegetables and fruits, reducing sodium, reading the Nutrition Facts table and planning ahead before grocery shopping are sure to add up over the long term.

We know that making good choices about what we eat has a positive impact on our health and quality of life, and may help reduce the number of visits to the doctor.  Reductions in obesity, high blood pressure, and other chronic diseases can also mean better productivity and big savings in our healthcare system.

I encourage all Canadians to take an active role in making informed food choices. To learn more about the importance of healthy eating, please visit www.healthycanadians.gc.ca/eatwell.

In closing, I would like to thank Metro for hosting us today and all our partners who are working with our Government.  Together, we can all help improve the health of Canadians and their families.

Thank you.