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Is the minimum enough? Affordability of a nutritious diet for minimum wage earners in Nova Scotia (2002–2012)

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Abstract

OBJECTIVE: This paper aims to assess the affordability of a nutritious diet for households earning minimum wage in Nova Scotia (NS) from 2002 to 2012 using an economic simulation that includes food costing and secondary data.

METHODS: The cost of the National Nutritious Food Basket (NNFB) was assessed with a stratified, random sample of grocery stores in NS during six time periods: 2002, 2004/2005, 2007, 2008, 2010 and 2012. The NNFB’s cost was factored into affordability scenarios for three different household types relying on minimum wage earnings: a household of four; a lone mother with three children; and a lone man. Essential monthly living expenses were deducted from monthly net incomes using methods that were standardized from 2002 to 2012 to determine whether adequate funds remained to purchase a basic nutritious diet across the six time periods.

RESULTS: A 79% increase to the minimum wage in NS has resulted in a decrease in the potential deficit faced by each household scenario in the period examined. However, the household of four and the lone mother with three children would still face monthly deficits ($44.89 and $496.77, respectively, in 2012) if they were to purchase a nutritiously sufficient diet.

CONCLUSION: As a social determinant of health, risk of food insecurity is a critical public health issue for low wage earners. While it is essential to increase the minimum wage in the short term, adequately addressing income adequacy in NS and elsewhere requires a shift in thinking from a focus on minimum wage towards more comprehensive policies ensuring an adequate livable income for everyone.

Résumé

OBJECTIF: Évaluer l’abordabilité d’un régime alimentaire nutritif pour les ménages qui gagnaient le salaire minimum en Nouvelle-Écosse (N.-É.) de 2002 à 2012, à l’aide d’une simulation économique incluant des données de calcul des coûts des aliments et des données secondaires.

MÉTHODE: Nous avons calculé le coût du Panier à provisions nutritif national (PPNN) dans un échantillon aléatoire d’épiceries de la N.-É. au cours de six périodes (2002, 2004-2005, 2007, 2008, 2010 et 2012). Nous avons intégré le coût du PPNN dans des scénarios d’abordabilité pour trois types de ménages au salaire minimum: une famille de quatre personnes; une mère de famille monoparentale avec trois enfants; et un homme seul. Nous avons déduit les frais de subsistance mensuels de base du revenu net mensuel à l’aide de méthodes standardisées, de 2002 à 2012, pour déterminer s’il restait suffisamment d’argent pour acheter les aliments de base d’un régime nutritif au cours des six périodes.

RÉSULTATS: Une hausse de 79 % du salaire minimum en N.-É. a entraîné une baisse du déficit potentiel des ménages selon chaque scénario durant la période à l’étude. Cependant, le ménage de quatre personnes et celui de la mère de famille monoparentale avec trois enfants seraient encore confrontés à des déficits mensuels (de 44,89 $ et de 496,77 $, respectivement, en 2012) s’ils devaient acheter les aliments d’un régime suffisamment nutritif.

CONCLUSION: Le risque d’insécurité alimentaire, en tant que déterminant social de la santé, est un grave problème de santé publique pour les petits salariés. Nous reconnaissons qu’il est essentiel de hausser le salaire minimum à court terme, mais pour aborder convenablement la suffisance des revenus en N.-É. et ailleurs, il faut modifier notre façon de penser en insistant moins sur le salaire minimum et davantage sur des politiques plus globales, qui assurent un revenu de subsistance suffisant à tout le monde.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Human Nutrition, Food Action Research Centre, Mount Saint Vincent University, 166 Bedford Highway, Halifax, NS, B3M 2J6, Canada

    Felicia D. Newell BScAHN, Patricia L. Williams PhD, PDt & Cynthia G. Watt MBA, BScAHN, PDt

Authors
  1. Felicia D. Newell BScAHN
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  2. Patricia L. Williams PhD, PDt
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  3. Cynthia G. Watt MBA, BScAHN, PDt
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Patricia L. Williams PhD, PDt.

Additional information

Acknowledgements: The participatory food costing has been supported by grants from Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness (formerly Department of Health Promotion and Protection) from 2004 to present and from Health Canada from 2001 to 2003. The authors thank all of the partners who were shared recipients of the grants: Food Action Research Centre, Mount Saint Vincent University; Nova Scotia Food Security Network; Atlantic Health Promotion Research Centre; Nova Scotia Nutrition Council; and the collaborating Community Action Program for Children and Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program-funded family resource centres/projects of Nova Scotia. Special thanks to all of the participants and staff of the collaborating family resource centres/projects and members of the Participatory Food Costing Working Group of the Nova Scotia Food Security Network. We gratefully acknowledge the work of Lesley Frank (2007 to 2008), Michelle Florence (2008 to 2009) and Christine Johnson (2004 to 2005), project coordinators, for their invaluable role. Special thanks to Barb Anderson for her helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper and to Dr. Ilya Blum for his support with data analysis.

Conflict of Interest: None to declare.

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Newell, F.D., Williams, P.L. & Watt, C.G. Is the minimum enough? Affordability of a nutritious diet for minimum wage earners in Nova Scotia (2002–2012). Can J Public Health 105, e158–e165 (2014). https://doi.org/10.17269/cjph.105.4322

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.17269/cjph.105.4322

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