Determinants, effects, and coping strategies for low-yield periods of harvest: a qualitative study in two communities in Nunavut, Canada

Food sovereignty among Inuit in Nunavut, Canada has long meant year-round harvest of country (hunted, fished, or gathered) food. In recent decades, climatic and non-climatic challenges have complicated these subsistence activities, threatening food security. We examine the meaning of country food, identify determinants of low-yield periods of country food harvest and their effects on community health, and summarize coping strategies and ideas for sustaining food security during these “leaner” periods. Thirty semi-structured interviews were conducted in July and August of 2018 with elders and/or hunters and trappers in Cambridge Bay and Pond Inlet. We found country food holds diverse meanings in the lives of our participants, including for their diet and nutrition, health, Inuit identity and traditions, practice of harvest and subsistence, and spirituality. Participants reported reduced wildlife populations, environmental or weather issues, changing wildlife migration patterns, and financial or equipment-related constraints as determinants of low-yield periods of harvest. Community health is impacted during lean periods across four interrelated dimensions: “craving” of country food, physical health, mental health, and nutrition. Due to their lifelong reliance on country food, elders were described as being particularly vulnerable and are prioritized within the traditional food sharing system. The most commonly cited coping strategies were turning to intra- or inter-community food sharing networks for country food and purchasing groceries. To support communities during low-yield periods of harvest, participants suggested increased support for Hunters and Trappers Organizations to acquire country food for community distribution, as well as greater financial and equipment support for harvesters.