National Survey reveals 91 per cent of Canadians believe health is the key to happiness
CHFA presents four simple ways to stay happy and healthy this winter
In response to new national survey results and with cold and flu season fast approaching, the Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) have put together simple and effective tips to help Canadians stay happy and healthy during the winter months.
The survey of more than 1,500 Canadians conducted by CHFA revealed that the vast majority (91 per cent) of Canadians believe that their overall health impacts their level of happiness. The same survey also shows that more than half of our population (54 per cent) get sick most often in the winter.
When asked what factors are negatively impacting their health, Canadians from coast to coast reported that lack of sleep tops the list at 73 per cent. Sleep was followed closely by stress and lack of mindfulness (57 per cent), lack of exercise (52 per cent) and poor nutrition (46 per cent).
Additional interesting findings from the survey include:
Canadians’ favourite foods to ward off cold and fluand stay happy and healthy include chicken soup/broth (49 per cent), oranges (49 per cent) and tea (48 per cent).
Canadians’ top picks for natural health products to keep them happy and healthy during cold and flu seasoninclude vitamins C (46 per cent) and D (37 per cent).
Things Canadians do to stay happy and healthy:Over three-quarters say they improve their sleep (76 per cent), improve eating habits (43 per cent) and engage in exercise (40 per cent).
As Canadians prepare to celebrate the fifth annual National Health Products (NHP) Week, which runs from November 7 to 13, 2016, the focus is on practical and innovative ways to stay healthy through the holidays and into the New Year.
“Our goal this NHP Week is to arm Canadians with the tools they need to maintain health and happiness during cold and flu season,” said Michelle W. Book, CHFA’s in-house holistic nutritionist. “We identified four pillars of immunity, each including simple steps Canadians can take to help boost their immune system naturally this season and beyond.”
CHFA’s four pillars of immunity include:
Nutrition: Lack of proper nutrition has been linked to decreased immunity and increased risk of illness. Nuts, fermented foods and garlic are all shown to help boost the immune system.
Exercise: Engaging in 30-60 minutes every day can improve your body’s immune response. To improve exercise and immune health consider including krill oil, protein and vitamin D as part of your daily routine.
Sleep: Our bodies respond to lack of sleep in a similar way as it does to acute stress. Try adding magnesium, L-theanine and melatonin for better sleep.
Mindfulness: Mindfulness can reduce markers for inflammation and stress hormones. Probiotics and omega-3s can be beneficial in managing stress.
“While we always encourage Canadians to speak to their health care practitioners when they are under the weather, we also want to encourage everyone to consider adding natural health products to improve overall wellbeing and boost immunity,” says CHFA President Helen Long. “When you visit a local CHFA Member health food store, you can find all kinds of safe, effective and high-quality supplements, vitamins, minerals, herbal products and traditional medicines. Canadians should feel confident that Health Canada-approved natural health products can play an important role in maintaining and optimizing our health and happiness.”
Canadians should also be aware that Health Canada is proposing changes that impact natural health products in two fundamental ways:
Some products will no longer require Health Canada review and will provide less information.
Other products will be required to submit drug-level scientific evidence to support their claims.
About CHFA
The Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) is Canada's largest national trade association dedicated to the natural health and organic products industry. The association represents manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, distributors and importers of natural health and organic products. With a membership of more than 1,000 businesses across the country, CHFA represents an industry that contributes more than $6 billion to the Canadian economy. Michelle W. Book is CHFA’s in-house holistic nutritionist, trained in natural and complementary therapies.
About the survey:
A survey of 1591 Canadians was completed online between September 12th to 15th 2016 using Leger’s online panel, LegerWeb. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of +/-2.5per cent, 19 times out of 20.
ACE launches JointHealth™ Education
North America's first on-line classroom designed to educate, empower and graduate today's modern arthritis patient
Arthritis Consumer Experts (ACE) today announced the launch of its newest on-line patient education program: JointHealth™ Education. Designed to enable arthritis patients to progress from being a "student" of arthritis to full-fledged "graduate," JointHealth™ Education empowers and equips them to be equal partners on their health care team. As part of the launch, ACE is introducing the first course in the program - JointHealth™ Education: Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) - to help patients and their healthcare providers better understand each other's motivations and goals for the patient's overall treatment and care plan.
"JointHealth™ Education was inspired by many of ACE's members living with an inflammatory arthritis who have told us they lack the communications expertise to have full, satisfying conversations with their rheumatologists on topics such as treatment options during their clinical visits. The program is informed by our organization's participation on a global advisory panel that conducted a survey in 16 countries of rheumatoid arthritis patients and their health care providers. The results illuminate the discord between the needs, concerns and fears of patients compared to the views of their health care providers," said Cheryl Koehn, Founder and President of Arthritis Consumer Experts and a member of the RA Narrative Global Advisory Panel.
Key findings of the RA Narrative Global Patient Survey included:
The vast majority of RA patients survey indicated they defined treatment success as no longer being in pain and having little to no inflammation, followed by improvement in their overall quality of life; the healthcare provider survey reported that their goals for their patients were achieving disease remission and/or low disease activity;
More than a third of patients surveyed reported they do not take their RA prescription medication as prescribed;
Over two-thirds of RA patients reported they felt uncomfortable raising their concerns/fear with the healthcare provider, and over a third strongly agreed or agreed that they worry if they ask too many questions, their healthcare provider would consider them a "difficult patient" and this would affect their quality of care.
These and other important findings from the RA Narrative Global Patient Survey led ACE to seek a made-in-Canada solution that focuses on closing the "communication gap" between RA patients and their rheumatologist to help them work as equal partners in disease management.
"The survey represents the views of 4,000 RA patients around the world and of their healthcare providers in the companion survey, providing ACE the road map for the development of JointHealth Education RA," said Koehn. "This evidence tells us that a patient's perception of their RA and its treatment, as well as their relationship with their healthcare provider, impacts the management and the outcomes of their disease. It shows us that, together, RA patients and their rheumatologists can better communicate and understand one another's views to achieve the best possible outcomes for patients."
JointHealth™ Education provides current, evidence-informed lessons, quizzes and coaching videos through a secure, on-line classroom where they can learn from the comfort of their own home or over the work day lunch hour. The program helps prepare patients to appropriately frame their health concerns and questions with their healthcare provider. Upon successful completion of a course the patient "Graduate" receives a certificate indicating they have the knowledge and communication tips needed to successfully prepare for their medical visit, talk to their health care provider about setting treatment goals and making an overall plan, discuss specific treatments (medication and non-medication forms) to manage and monitor their type of arthritis.
"Canadian rheumatologists have been actively discussing and pursuing ways to improve communication between patients and rheumatologists in order to work together to set treatment goals and establish a treatment plan to achieve the best possible disease outcomes. JointHealth™ Education is a valuable tool not just for patients, but also for rheumatologists – junior and senior, alike – to better assess the wants and needs of patients through their eyes, not just ours as was the case in days gone by," said Kam Shojania, MD, FRCPC, Clinical Professor and Head, Division of Rheumatology, University of British Columbia, and Medical Director of the Mary Pack Arthritis Program.
About Arthritis Consumer Experts
Arthritis Consumer Experts is a national organization that provides free, science-based information and education programs in both official languages to people with arthritis. ACE serves people living with all forms of arthritis by helping them take control of their disease and improve their quality of life through education and empowerment. Founded and led by people with arthritis, ACE also actively advocates on arthritis health and policy issues, through ACE's JointHealth™ family of programs and the Arthritis Broadcast Network, directly to consumers/patients, healthcare professionals, media and government. ACE is guided by a strict set of guiding principles, set out by an advisory board comprised of leading scientists, medical professionals and informed arthritis consumers.
World Stroke Day reminds us all that stroke is treatable
March of Dimes Canada celebrates global campaign on October 29
Anna Bauer-Ross was 36 when she had her stroke. She was on vacation in the Bahamas with her young kids, unaware of how her life was about to change.
"I had to relearn the basics because the stroke had caused a severe left side neuropathy and even damaged my vocal chords," Bauer-Ross says. "My days of being a busy mom, carpooling, and taking my children to their sporting events were over. I was learning how to conquer the most elementary tasks: walking, writing, even seeing."
The most surprising thing is that Anna is not alone - stroke can and does strike people of all ages. It's a devastating diagnosis, of course, but there's good news too: stroke is treatable!
That's the theme of this year's World Stroke Day (October 29th). Like March of Dimes Canada'sStroke Recovery Program, the World Stroke campaign focuses on rehabilitation and recovery, and the fact that stroke survivors can return to engaged, fulfilling lives.
"What happens after a stroke is extremely important," says Andria Spindel, President and CEO of March of Dimes Canada. "March of Dimes Canada focuses on helping the individual move past the stroke, find meaning and support, develop re-integration and independence skills, build new or renew social relationships, access recreation, health education and more. Stroke Recovery groups assist in rebuilding lives."
Today, Bauer-Ross is doing well, but she describes recovery as a long-term process.
"Recovery never ends. It's a journey. The key has been to understand the importance of medication maintenance, staying active with the help of my family, and doing all that I can to stay on course with my recovery."
March of Dimes Canada is a nationally registered charitable organization providing support services to people with disabilities, their families and caregivers across Canada. Our goal is to enhance the independence and community participation of people with physical disabilities every day through a wide range of programs and services across Canada. For more information, please visit www.marchofdimes.caor call 1-800-263-3463.
SOURCE March of Dimes Canada
World's Smallest Pacemaker Licenced for Canadian Patients
The Medtronic Micra Transcatheter Pacing System is the first leadless pacemaker licenced in Canada and the worlds smallest pacemaker. (CNW Group/Medtronic Canada)
The Medtronic Micra™ Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS) is the First Leadless Pacemaker Licenced in Canada
Medtronic Canada, a subsidiary of Medtronic plc (NYSE:MDT), today announced it has received a Health Canada licence for the world's smallest pacemaker, the Medtronic Micra™ Transcatheter Pacing System (TPS). The Micra TPS is the first Health Canada licenced product with miniaturized pacing technology. It is cosmetically invisible and small enough to be delivered through a catheter and implanted directly into the heart - providing a safe alternative to conventional pacemakers without the need for cardiac wires (leads).
Comparable in size to a large vitamin capsule, the Micra TPS is attached to the heart with small tines and delivers electrical impulses that pace the heart through an electrode at the end of the device. Unlike traditional pacemakers, the Micra TPS does not require leads or a surgical "pocket" under the skin, and there are no visible signs of the device. The Micra TPS responds to patients' activity levels by automatically adjusting therapy.
Micra TPS is the first and only leadless pacing system to be licenced for both 1.5 and 3 Tesla (T) full-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, providing patients with continued access to these advanced imaging diagnostic procedures.
The Micra design incorporates a retrieval feature to enable repositioning if needed; however, the device is designed to be left in the body. For patients who need more than one device, the miniaturized Micra TPS was designed with a feature that enables it to be permanently turned off so it can remain in the body and a new device can be implanted without risk of electrical interaction.
In November 2015, data from the Medtronic Micra TPS Global Clinical Trial, which included two Canadian centres, were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented during a late-breaking Special Report at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions. These data showed the Micra TPS was successfully implanted in 99.2 percent of patients, there were no (0) dislodgements, and the system met its safety and effectiveness endpoints with wide margins at six month follow-up.
Data presented in August 2016 at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Congress showed that the risk for major complications with the Micra TPS remained consistently low, with 96 percent of patients experiencing no major complications through 12 months follow-up (95 percent confidence interval, 94.2 percent-97.2 percent, P<0.0001). The Micra TPS reduced the risk of major complications by nearly half (48 percent; hazard ratio = 0.52, P=0.001) compared to conventional systems and the risk was lower across all patient sub-groups, whether measured by age, sex or comorbidity (all hazard ratios < 1.0).
The overall reduction in major complications with the Micra TPS was associated with a 47 percent decrease (p=0.017) in the risk of hospitalization and 82 percent (p<0.001) reduction in risk of system revisions (meaning extraction, repositioning or replacement) compared to conventional pacing systems.
"Dating back to the development of the first external battery operated pacemaker more than 60 years ago, Medtronic has a long history of collaborating with clinicians to better understand the needs of patients, and then innovating new products to meet those needs," said Michael Blackwell, director of the CardioVascular Group at Medtronic Canada. "We are thrilled to be the first to introduce a transcatheter pacemaker to patients in Canada, and we're looking forward to working with physicians and educating implanters to extend the positive results of our global clinical trial experience to even more patients."
The Micra TPS was awarded CE Mark in April 2015 and FDA approval in April 2016. It is intended for use in patients who need a single-chamber pacemaker. The device was designed to allow patients to be followed by their physicians and send data remotely via the Medtronic CareLink™ Network; remote monitoring of Micra devices is expected to be available in the near future.
In collaboration with leading clinicians, researchers and scientists worldwide, Medtronic offers one of the broadest ranges of innovative medical technology for the interventional and surgical treatment of cardiovascular disease and cardiac arrhythmias. The company strives to offer products and services that deliver clinical and economic value to healthcare consumers and providers around the world.
Urging Canadians to get tough on diabetes
Sun Life Financial commitment to diabetes totals more than $17 million
Sun Life Financial Inc. (TSX: SLF) (NYSE: SLF) is proud to be teaming up with the Canadian Football League (CFL) in the fight against diabetes. This unique collaboration, now in its fourth year, encourages Canadians to take a type 2 diabetes online risk test at www.sunlifeagainstdiabetes.ca, reminding Canadians that knowing their risk level is simple yet vital.
"We are excited to join forces with the CFL to encourage football fans and Canadians to take charge of their health and understand their type 2 diabetes risk," said Paul Joliat, Assistant Vice-President, Philanthropy & Sponsorships, Sun Life Financial. "Currently, one in three Canadians is affected by diabetes or prediabetes. The good news is that 90% of those impacted by the disease have type 2 diabetes which can be delayed and/or prevented with healthy eating, exercise, and of course, identifying your risk."
This year, Sun Life and the CFL are launching a multi-media campaign to engage fans through tweets, photos and videos to raise awareness for diabetes and its related complications. Through healthy eating and exercise tips, CFL players from each of the nine teams will be helping to motivate fans to take charge of their health, learn their type 2 diabetes risk and take the necessary action to prevent and/or delay its onset.
"We are thrilled to team up with Sun Life in their efforts to raise awareness for diabetes prevention," said CFL Commissioner, Jeffrey L. Orridge. "We hope to inspire our fans to be leaders in the fight against the disease and go online to take the test."
As part of an overall diabetes awareness campaign, Sun Life is also working alongside the Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA) throughout October and November to encourage Canadians to get screened and potentially prevent new cases of type 2 diabetes. Since announcing support of the cause in late 2012, Sun Life has proudly committed more than $17 million in support of diabetes awareness, prevention, care and research initiatives.
Canadians are urged to get involved. Visit www.sunlifeagainstdiabetes.ca to take the type 2 diabetes online risk test or visit www.cfl.ca/sunlife for more information and to watch the player videos.
About Sun Life Financial
Sun Life Financial is a leading international financial services organization providing a diverse range of protection and wealth products and services to individuals and corporate customers. Sun Life Financial has operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Japan, Indonesia, India, China, Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. As of June 30, 2016, the Sun Life Financial group of companies had total assets under management of $865 billion. For more information please visit www.sunlife.com.
Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF.
About the Canadian Football League
Today's CFL is more than just our great game of football. It's fans sharing their excitement for what they see on the field, and what they experience off it. Stay up to date on all the non-stop action at CFL.ca. And join all of Canada as we celebrate the 104th Grey Cup, presented by Shaw, next November in Toronto.
Bureau releases report questioning restrictions on health care advertising - International best practices shared with regulators
Restrictions on advertising in health care industries in Canada may be having unintended consequences, including higher prices, lower quality of service and reduced innovation.
In a report released today, the Bureau finds that most health care industry regulators tend to restrict advertising in some form, but there is insufficient evidence to assess whether these restrictions are achieving their policy objectives.
Regulators may restrict advertising to address legitimate concerns such as protecting consumer safety. However they may also restrict advertising for other reasons.
For example, when it comes to advertising low prices, regulators may be concerned that consumers associate low price with poor quality and this could damage the image of the profession. Regulators may respond by banning price advertising altogether, which makes it difficult for consumers to make informed purchasing decisions . This overly broad response could have the unintended consequence of driving prices up, reducing competition and stifling innovation.
The Bureau's report reviews economic literature related to the effects of advertising restrictions. The literature shows that when restrictions are lowered or removed, consumers do not experience significant quality reductions, and may even benefit from lower prices.
The report calls on governments and self-regulatory bodies to begin collecting and compiling data on the outcomes of their policies, such as changes in prices and consumer preferences, and to move toward evidence-based decision-making.
In support of this recommendation, the Bureau's latest issue of the Competition Advocate includes internationally-accepted best practices for regulators to follow when developing effective regulation.
Quick Facts
The four key principles for effective regulation that are outlined in the CompetitionAdvocate are:
Regulate only when really necessary,
Use the best available evidence to inform decisions,
Strike the right balance between policy objectives and minimal intrusion, and
Review regulations regularly.
Greater competition leads to innovation that can result in lower prices and increased choice for consumers.
Quote
"Competition is good for business and for consumers. The Bureau is calling on governments and other regulators to collect evidence on the impacts of their policies and to move toward more evidence-based regulation. Better regulation means more competition for the benefit of all Canadians."
The Competition Bureau, as an independent law enforcement agency, ensures that Canadian businesses and consumers prosper in a competitive and innovative marketplace.
SOURCE Competition Bureau
National organization wants Canada to be the Silicon Valley of natural products
Natural Products Canada (NPC), the national centre of excellence for the commercialization of natural products, has completed its initial round of hiring, setting the stage for Canadians to benefit from a thriving natural products sector.
"We have formed a national team to help Canada benefit from the growing global demand for natural products," says Shelley King, CEO of NPC. "We're ready to help companies and researchers access the resources they need to bring validated ideas to market faster, cheaper, and more efficiently."
The initial hires will focus on NPC's mandate to align and optimize Canada's assets – natural resources, technologies, platforms, expertise, and world-class research – into a vibrant, pan-Canadian natural products ecosystem that can save time and effort for natural product companies.
Along with King, the NPC team is comprised of Sue Coueslan, VP Communications and Stakeholder Relations; and Karen Wight, VP Investment and Finance. In addition, NPC has hired its first three regional directors: David Gauthier of NPC-West will work closely with the regional node, Ag-WestBio; Paul-Thomas Lacroix of NPC-Quebec will work closely with Quebec's regional node, the Institute of Nutrition and Functional Foods, Université Laval; and Stephen Ball of NPC-Atlantic will work closely with the Atlantic node, the PEI BioAlliance. Other regional directors will be recruited in the near future.
NPC was announced February 12, 2016 by the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development. Since then, King and the Board of Directors have been engaged in strategic planning and recruitment.
"There is real potential for Canada to be a global leader in the commercialization of natural products and technologies," says Board Chair, Robert Orr, a 35-year veteran of the food, nutritional ingredient, and private equity investment business. "We have spent the last few months working with stakeholders across the country to shape the plan that will turn that potential into reality."
Partnering with a wide range of private and public investors, experts, and organizations, NPC will create a unique commercialization system to help companies and researchers address the many factors involved in bringing high value products to the marketplace.
Key initiatives for the first year of operations include launching the NPC investment program and developing a database of the technologies, platforms, service providers, investors, and expertise essential to the successful commercialization of natural products.
Natural Products Canada (NPC) is a not-for-profit organization with a vision to make Canada flourish as the Silicon Valley of natural products. It aims to align, expand, and optimize the pan-Canadian natural products ecosystem to accelerate the development of products and technology platforms that bring real value to real customers. NPC was established in 2015, and is funded by a range of public and private investors, including the Government of Canada's Centre of Excellence in Commercialization and Research (CECR) program administered by the Networks of Centres of Excellence.
NPC
Image with caption: "Newly formed Natural Products Canada will align and optimize existing assets, expertise, and investments into a national ecosystem to accelerate the commercialization of natural products and technology platforms. From left to right: Sue Coueslan, Paul-Thomas Lacroix, Karen Wight, David Gauthier, Shelley King (CEO), and Stephen Ball. (CNW Group/Natural Products Canada)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160926_C4884_PHOTO_EN_780944.jpg
SOURCE Natural Products Canada
Sun Life Financial, Fitbit and new rewards for daily steps contribute to app's growth
Canada's celebrated wellness incentives app, Carrot Rewards, recently introduced new initiatives and partnerships as part of its long-term growth strategy.
A new daily step tracker feature allows users of the popular free app to earn rewards for achieving their personalized walking goals. A large majority of BC users are already earning daily rewards for walking and nearly ten billion steps taken by British Columbians this summer have been tracked and rewarded through the Carrot app.
Starting today the Carrot app will also be integrated with the industry leading activity tracking device, Fitbit. BC residents will now have one more convenient option for connecting and earning daily activity rewards through Carrot (in addition to Health Kit and Google Fit).
Also starting today Sun Life Financial, in close collaboration with the Canadian Diabetes Association, is proudly joining the broader Carrot coalition in British Columbia as the sponsor of all the Steps rewards that BC residents earn through the app.
"Thousands of British Columbians have already taken steps toward a healthier lifestyle with the Carrot Rewards app," Government of British Columbia Health Minister Terry Lake said. "We know that increased activity can have positive benefits for our health and, thanks to these new partnerships, there are now even more incentives to get people moving and receive rewards for healthy behaviour."
"We're proud to be expanding the Carrot eco-system and functionality so significantly again," says CARROT insights (developer of Carrot Rewards) CEO Andreas Souvaliotis. "By joining hands with genuine game-changer organizations like Sun Life, Fitbit and the Canadian Diabetes Association, we are further enhancing the effectiveness of our powerful program and we're helping build an even healthier Canada."
"One in three Canadians is affected by diabetes or prediabetes," says Rick Blickstead, President and CEO, Canadian Diabetes Association. "The good news is that in many of the cases, type 2 diabetes can be delayed and/or prevented with healthier eating or increased physical activity. By partnering with Carrot and Sun Life, we hope to encourage people to take charge of their health and be rewarded for achieving a healthy lifestyle."
Sun Life is committed to the prevention of diabetes and its related complications. Since announcing support of the cause in late 2012, Sun Life has proudly committed over $13 million towards diabetes awareness, prevention, care and research initiatives.
"Sun Life is proud to partner with CARROT Insights and the Canadian Diabetes Association in supporting this unique health initiative in British Columbia," says Chris Denys, SVP Possibilities, Digital Health Solutions, Sun Life Financial Canada. "It aligns with our mission to proactively engage Canadians and empower them to take a more active role in managing their health and well-being."
The Carrot Rewards app has seen significant success since it launched in BC six months ago. To date, nearly 2% of British Columbians have downloaded the app and have earned over a hundred million loyalty points just for learning how to live healthier and for achieving simple daily activity goals. Carrot is now being rolled out across the rest of Canada with similarly impressive results.
The Government of Canada, through the Public Health Agency of Canada, invested $5 million over five years in the Carrot Rewards app project. The Government of British Columbia provided $2.5 million to support the early launch of the app in B.C. Including contributions from the private sector, a total of more than $15 million has already been invested in this world-leading program.
September 17 to 25, 2016, marks this year’s National Organic Week, the largest annual celebration of organic food, farming and products across the country. With hundreds of events and thousands of retail promotions taking place across Canada, Organic Week showcases the benefits of organic agriculture and its positive impact on the environment, animal welfare, as well as our well-being. Supported by regional partners and coordinated by the Canada Organic Trade Association (COTA), Canadian Organic Growers (COG), and the Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA), Organic Week shines a spotlight on why Canadians should choose to think before they eat.
“With the number of organic products on the market continuously growing, it’s easier than ever to go organic,” says Rochelle Eisen, president of COG. Many of Canada’s top organic farms, wineries, retailers and restaurants take part in Organic Week, offering Canadians the perfect opportunity to experience firsthand the bounty of Canada’s organic harvest. “Whether it’s hosting a potluck picnic for friends or sampling organic wine and beer, we encourage Canadians to help spread the word about how choosing organic means supporting sustainability and promoting animal welfare.”
Some new and exciting trends have been revealed thanks to the Canada Organic Trade Association’s second national consumer survey to be released later this year. The study aimed to understand consumers’ awareness of the benefits of organic agriculture, uncover consumers’ organic purchasing habits and gauge the level of trust Canadians have in organic and non-organic claims.
Key findings from the study show:
The face of organic is changing as more “millennials” are shifting towards organic in Canada:
· One in five (twenty-one per cent) shoppers from 18 to 34 years say they are buying more organic, while shoppers in older age groups are holding steady.
· Eighty-six percent of Canadians expect to increase or maintain their organic spending in the near future.
· The number of consumers that are regularly buying organic in the country is around 20 million (fifty-six per cent of Canadians).
“Governments are following in the footsteps of consumer trends,” says Tia Loftsgard, Executive Director of COTA. “Federal investment in the organic sector and provincial initiatives supporting farmers to transition to organic show how consumer-led efforts can truly make a difference. We’re proud to be involved in the continued growth of the organic movement alongside its passionate ambassadors this September.”
More and more Canadians are looking to reduce their exposure to synthetic chemicals and genetically engineered (GMO) ingredients with the aim of taking better care of themselves, their families, and the environment. Coast-to-coast Organic Week events range in scale, from smaller organic farm tours to community-wide organic festivals. Hundreds of health food stores, farmer’s markets and grocery chains will be showcasing organic products and educating consumers.
“With events taking place in communities all over the country, there are so many ways Canadians can support and get involved in the Organic Week celebration,” says CHFA president, Helen Long. “Last year, we saw everything from pickling workshops and farm tours to recipe contests and organic food and drink tastings. These happenings represent the creative ways Canadians are choosing to go organic and how they are making a conscious decision to protect their bodies and the environment, all while supporting local farmers.”
To find out more about Organic Week events or promotions being offered near you, please visit organicweek.ca.
Organic Week was made possible this year by champion sponsors UNFI Canada, Sobeys Inc., Manitoba Harvest Hemp Foods, Nature’s Path Foods, Clif Bar & Company, alive Publishing Group Inc, PC Organics, Mike and Mike’s Organics, Cal-Organics Farms, Yorkshire Valley Farm, Green Organic Vegetables, Field Farm Marketing Ltd., DOM International Limited, Canadian School of Natural Nutrition, Earthbound Farm Organic, Wholesome!, True Organic Juice, DeeBee’s SpecialTea Foods, Mumm’s Sprouting Seeds, Ecocert Canada, Organic Meadow, Pacific Organic Seafood Association, Organic Garage, The Homemade Organics Company, Fromagerie L’Ancêtre, Pro-Cert Organic, Patience Fruit & Co, The Big Carrot, Hippie Foods, Ethical Bean Coffee, Quality Assurance International, and Fairtrade Canada.
RYU is partnering with the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation (CBCF) for a special event that will coincide with the launch of Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, and are looking for your support!
What: we will be hosting 30-40 people for a bootcamp and brunch (snacks and beverages) at the flagship store on West 4th Avenue on S. In VANCOUVER.
When: Saturday October 1st from 9AM-11AM
Where: RYU flagship store
Why: to raise funds for the CBCF - bootcamp will be by donation with 100% proceeds going towards CBCF
Who: bootcamp is open to the public.
Ways you can support:
Join the workout (by donation) and bring a friend, family member or your clients!
Donate your services as part of our event’s raffle or silent auction (ex: 1 free hour FMS assessment and personal training)
Promote our Bootcamp event invitation via social media on FB/Instagram/Twitter (invite graphic coming soon)
Promote the purchase of pink RYU apparel throughout the month of October
25% of proceeds on all featured pink products will be donated to CBCF both in-store and online
Host a "By-Donation" workout of your own at RYU within the month of October (proceeds towards CBCF): please contact Amy to coordinate at amhy@ryu.com
TRAIN IT RIGHT NEWSLETTER
Sign Up and get a free 7 day Train it Right HIIT Program!
