BLOG: QIA supporting Grise Fiord HTO to help feed the community during COVID-19

Posted April 23, 2020

Members of the Iviq Hunters and Trappers Association in Grise Fiord are using funds provided by the Qikiqtani Inuit Association to help feed the community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To date, local hunters have harvested about 1,000 kilograms of food including muskox, char, seal, ptarmigan, Arctic hare and polar bears.

Priority for distributing the country food was for Elders and families who do not have the ability or means to hunt. However, due to the bounty of the harvest, every household in Grise Fiord is getting some country food. The community was also able to donate 250 kilograms of Muskox meat to the Hunters and Trappers Organization in Arctic Bay.

“At this time of the pandemic we wanted to ensure country food is secure for members of the community,” said Iviq Secretary-Treasurer Marty Kuluguqtuq, “if there’s food left over, we’ll be happy to share it with other communities. Hunters and providers have always shared their harvests with others. The only difference now is that they’re getting paid. It’s a win/win/win situation.”

The funds for the community hunt were provided by the Qikiqtani Inuit Associaiton and Nunavut Tunngavik. QIA is providing $5,000 to each Hunters and Trappers Organization in the Qikiqtani Region with matching funds from Nunavut Tunngavik for a total of $10,000 for each community.