Saskatoon Good Food Junction closure spurs healthy debate
As another food store readies to close, people debate pitfalls of finding healthy food in city
After 10 years of business in Saskatoon's Riversdale neighbourhood, the Good Food Junction Co-operative will close on Jan. 27.
The healthy food co-op's board of directors said the decision came after three years of low sales in a competitive market.
The news comes during a week in which discussions about access to healthy food options are brewing. Earlier this week, the City Centre Food Cooperative held a pop-up grocery market at the Saskatoon Community Service Village.
The fruit and vegetable sale was a temporary way to deal with the lack of grocery access in the downtown core after the closure of the Shop Easy Grocery store in the City Park neighbourhood.
Many people said there needs to be a better food option in the area.
<a href="https://twitter.com/LeishaCBC">@LeishaCBC</a> Needs to be an established grocery store with (ie Sobey's) with reliable deliveries of food and decent prices. Edmonton has it ..
—@tarahackl<a href="https://twitter.com/LeishaCBC">@LeishaCBC</a> every large city I've been to has Sobeys, Metro, etc downtown. Smaller stores but functional. Why not in Saskatoon?
—@hi_robyn<a href="https://twitter.com/tarahackl">@tarahackl</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CBCSaskatoon">@CBCSaskatoon</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/LeishaCBC">@LeishaCBC</a> That didn't work in City Park. Chain stores want profits. They'd have to see it as philanthropy...
—@ShellyYXEOthers offered criticism.
<a href="https://twitter.com/hi_robyn">@hi_robyn</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/CBCSaskatoon">@CBCSaskatoon</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/LeishaCBC">@LeishaCBC</a> Despite what Atchie may think, <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/yxe?src=hash">#yxe</a> is not New York or Vancouver. Invest in the city not just downtown.
—@Evan68Ford<a href="https://twitter.com/LeishaCBC">@LeishaCBC</a> It will take change on many levels - corporate practices, peoples' expectations, gov't investment & fixing a broken food system
—@leleinahSome pointed out that the core neighbourhood store was up against cheaper food options nearby.
According to the Food Institute at the University of Guelph, the average Canadian household will spend about $350 more on food in 2016.
The dropping dollar, which one investment bank predicts is heading for 59 cents US, is expected to leave shoppers with higher grocery bills.
Are you working to bring healthy food options to Saskatoon's core neighbourhoods? Let us know. Email sasknews@cbc.ca.
Tweet your thoughts to @CBCSaskatoon or join the discussion on CBC Saskatoon's Facebook page.
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