Don’t make milk more expensive
We believe that the additional surcharge on milk for recycling purposes implemented on Aug. 1 is wrong. It is an onerous additional cost especially to low income families with young and growing children already struggling to make ends meet and often already unable to provide it for their kids.
Milk and milk products are necessary for growth and development of strong bones and teeth and are an important part of the Canada Food Guide. If children do not receive adequate amounts of milk in their growing years, their health will suffer, thus increasing already high health care costs in the future.
Adding an additional cost to milk is unfair for those most in need. Milk should be affordable for all families and available to all Yukon children. Toward this end we should be subsidizing milk in the Yukon instead of throwing yet another obstacle in the road for food security.
We fully agree with and support the importance of recycling, but not at the expense of children’s health.
Instead, increase the surcharge on other, less crucial items, such as pop, liquor and other unhealthy choices.
Especially here in the North, the cost of shipping in healthy foods makes them more expensive than in southern provinces. That is likely why previous governments have held out with implementing a surcharge on milk containers — it only makes good sense. Why would the Yukon government add a recycling surcharge to make them even more unaffordable?
Please re-think the implications of this decision.
Liz Reichenbach Carol Oberg Whitehorse