IQALUIT- Nunavummiut elders met with representatives of the National Seniors Council July 8, which has been touring Canada and meeting with seniors to hear their concerns.

Representatives of the council held a discussion with elders, with simultaneous Inuktitut interpretation, with the intent of including Nunavut's issues in a nationwide report.

According to Nunavut MP and Minister of Health Leona Aglukkaq, food security is a major issue for elders.

"I mean to go to the stores and to see a pineapple being sold for $15, or milk is $8. Food security for Nunavummiut in general, it's getting worse. It's not getting better," said Aglukkaq.

Aglukkaq criticized the federal food mail program, which is currently under review, saying, "The program needs to be more transparent, it has to be accessible to unilingual seniors in the communities. As it is right now you have to be English-speaking with a credit card. The benefit is going to the stores and airlines and not to the people."

According to National Seniors Council president Jean-Guy Souliere, the report will focus on how seniors volunteer in their communities and how to age in a healthy and positive way. When finished, it will include recommendations to the federal government on how to help seniors pursue those priorities.

"We are also very pleased to look into what it takes for seniors to stay active, remain engaged and continue contributing to society," said Souliere.

Souliere said the day and a half of consultations in Nunavut would certainly form an entire section of the report. He said Nunavut has many environmental and economic conditions which are unique compared to the rest of Canada, so some of the primary concerns of elders and seniors here are different from seniors in the country at large.

For example, abuse exists towards seniors across the country including Nunavut, but there are cultural and environmental differences.

"The council doesn't assume it has a very good grasp of elder abuse in the territories," Souliere said.

"We did not analyse it enough and so indicated in our report that maybe this is a bit different.

"But we did get input from aboriginal peoples from across the country on elder abuse and it's contained in our report."