Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - May 10, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba SPONSORED CONTENT The Problem For decades, food insecurity has plagued Manitoba’s isolated northern communities. In these areas, high transportation costs make healthy food harder to find and more expensive for individuals and families. Now, rising tensions – including U.S. threats to place tariffs on Canadian agricultural exports – are exposing vulnerabilities in Canada’s food supply chains. If trade is disrupted, it could become even more difficult to get affordable produce into remote areas. “Food security is increasingly tied to global trade dynamics,” says Dr. Miyoung Suh, a professor in the Department of Food and Human Nutritional Sciences at the University of Manitoba (UM). “When access to affordable, high-quality foods is restricted, we see rising rates of diabetes and obesity, especially in northern Indigenous communities. The Solution In response, a team from UM is working in Northern Manitoba with Opaskwayak Cree Nation (OCN) to address health challenges and support local food sovereignty. Together, they identified a local solution: Smart Vertical Farming (SMART-VF). This innovative, space-efficient system uses computer-monitored lighting and climate control to grow fresh herbs and vegetables year-round. By producing food directly in the community, SMART-VF reduces reliance on costly imports and ensures a steady supply of fresh food. Suh says the concept is showing promise. “The ability to grow food locally – regardless of what’s happening south of the border – offers communities a measure of sovereignty and stability,” Suh says. “We’re not just trying to improve fresh vegetables access; we’re trying to change the trajectory of chronic health conditions to help combat disease.” Initial research with these vegetables has already shown encouraging results in reducing blood pressure and obesity, with further data on diabetes expected by the end of 2025. The Impact By supporting communities to produce their own food, this research reduces dependency on imports and creates year-round access to fresh, nutritious food. “For generations, colonialism has disrupted our connection to the land and traditional food systems. SMART-VF gives us the tools to grow food on our terms, provide food security and build a healthier future within our community”, explains Stephanie Cook, Smart Farm Manager at the Opaskwayak Health Authority. This local supply helps lower costs and barriers, while strengthening local economic development. “The produce will be cheaper, making it more affordable. It will also be more accessible, making it easier for people to buy vegetables and incorporate them into their everyday diet,” Suh says. “Additionally, the facility will provide employment opportunities in crop management and tech-driven agriculture.” HOW VERTICAL FARMING IS STRENGTHENING FOOD SECURITY IN MANITOBA UM RESEARCH: Delivering Solutions For nearly 150 years, the University of Manitoba has transformed lives through groundbreaking research and homegrown innovation. We push the boundaries of knowledge and do the hard work here in Manitoba to move our community and the world forward. Our researchers tackle society’s most pressing challenges, from healthcare and sustainability to Arctic accessibility and security, delivering solutions that make a real impact. With a spirit of determination and discovery, we are shaping a better future for our province and beyond. We’re not just trying to improve food access; we’re trying to change the trajectory of chronic health conditions Dr. Miyoung Suh, professor in the Department of Food and Human Nutritional Sciences at UM Opaskwayak Cree Nation (OCN) Smart Vertical Farming WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM ● A7 NEWS I LOCAL SATURDAY, MAY 10, 2025 W ITH his approval ratings still soaring, Premier Wab Kinew can probably afford to anger a variety of different interests in the province without fear of losing the next election. However, nurses are not a constituen- cy to mess with. As the NDP government knows very well, nurses are where the rubber meets the road in health care. You can have an oversupply of doctors, hospital beds and emergency rooms and still not provide better health care without an adequate supply of nurses. Notwithstanding a generally pos- itive relationship with the NDP, the Manitoba Nurses Union bused several hundred of its members to the Manitoba legislature earlier this week for a rally that was, shall we say, explicit about how they feel. Standing on the front steps of the Legislative Building, the pink-shirted nurses displayed a pink banner that read: “Same Shift; Different Day.” However, the ‘f’ in shift was crossed out. Nurses can rest assured their mes- sage with the cleverly crossed-out letter was received, loud and clear. They want to make sure government and the public know that right now, it seems that every day a nurse works in this province ends up being a horrible, no good, very bad day. Why are they feeling so militant? Despite the Kinew government’s better efforts, Manitoba is still suf- fering from a profound shortage of nurses. That means those on the job are working longer hours, in hospitals over- whelmed by growing patient numbers, in an environment that is increasingly dangerous. There has been some progress. The province has been intensively recruiting doctors, nurses and other health-care professionals. It has also introduced new financial guardrails to cap the fees charged by private nursing agencies, a measure that will not only save regional health authorities signifi- cant sums of money, but may ultimately make working for private agencies a little less lucrative. Thanks to all those initiatives, in February Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara announced the province had made 1,200 net new hires of health- care professionals, including 481 new nurses. Some of those nurses came out of retirement, while others did as the minister had hoped and returned to the public system from private agencies. Given the Kinew government cannot be accused of doing nothing, then why are nurses so cranky? In large part, it seems the macro forces that are behind the problems faced by nurses have grown larger than the NDP planned for when it took power in the fall of 2023. And because the health-care system left for the NDP was a hot mess. The Opposition Progressive Conser- vatives have predictably asked nurses and the NDP government to stop “play- ing the blame game” by reminding ev- eryone how badly they did at managing health from 2016 to 2023. The problem is that while there will be a time to stop blaming the Tories for health-care woes, it isn’t now. Rash decisions to reconfigure the health system and a palpable and acute disdain for nurses and their unions played a significant role in exacerbat- ing the staffing shortage. There were other factors beyond the PC government’s control, not least of which was the horror of the early days of COVID-19. And Manitoba is not the only jurisdiction struggling to increase the total number in its nursing ranks; this is, essentially, an international shortage. However, the mistakes made by the Tories were so egregious, and so sustained, it was patently obvious that when their government was dethroned in the 2023 election, progress would be measured in years, not months. The most charitable analysis for the Kinew government is it has not had enough time to make a bigger dent in a problem that has grown larger since it took power. That perspective doesn’t absolve the NDP from the obligation to fulfil its promise to build a more effec- tive health-care system with greater capacity. But it does add some context. It should be noted the Kinew govern- ment arguably could have done more in the roughly 18 months it has been in power. However, political decisions to indulge in broad-based tax cuts — education and gas taxes, in particular — drained hundreds of millions of much-needed dollars from the provin- cial treasury. The lost revenue is particularly frustrating, given that there is a strong argument that a province such as Manitoba may have to pay at or above top salary levels to retrain and recruit more nurses. In a national and continen- tal war for talent, a smaller jurisdiction cannot afford to skimp on incentives. Additional efforts seem to be ongoing. The province claims it has responded to many of the recommendations in a February white paper produced by the MNU. As well, Asagwara is awaiting further recommendations on establish- ing firm patient-nurse ratios, an ap- proach used with some success in other provinces to alleviate the unsustainable workload nurses currently face. Much has been done since 2023 but so much more is needed. There is reason to be hopeful the current government — which has a natural political affinity with nurses — will make more improve- ments in subsequent years. But as the NDP moves forward, it should keep in mind one unambiguous fact: the nurses are watching your every move. dan.lett@freepress.mb.ca DAN LETT OPINION Overloaded with patients, running out of patience Nurses deliver clear, clever message to NDP A Brandon man has been sentenced to five years in prison for killing an “alarming” number of animals. Jess Nichols, 30, pleaded guilty to multiple counts of animal cruelty af- ter he killed 25 animals during a five- month period in 2022. “The level of violence involved and the brutality with which he killed them is stunning,” provincial court Judge Shauna Hewitt-Michta said in a deci- sion delivered this week in Brandon. In June 2022 Nichols’s roommate called police after finding several dead kittens outside their home. The decision detailed the roommate describing Nichols as a meth addict with mental-health problems. She explained witnessing abusive behaviour by Nichols in the past, such as picking animals up by the limbs and hitting them. When officers arrived at the home, police found and seized a tote contain- er with eight dead kittens. Injuries and dried blood were visible, the decision said. About five months later, Nichols was arrested for violating bail conditions prohibiting him from having pets after citizens alerted the office of the Chief Veterinary Officer about the accused buying kittens through internet ads. At the time of his second arrest in November, police found two dead rab- bits in Nichols’s kitchen and 15 dead kittens in a trash bag outside. Nichols told officers he had the ani- mals because he could not live without them and admitted to violating his bail conditions, Hewitt-Michta said in her decision. While he portrayed himself as act- ing impulsively, his statement to po- lice revealed a deliberate gathering of animals from advertisements on the internet with the claimed intention of helping them, according to the decision. “He told police he was bored and wanted to get back into fostering ani- mals. Initially, he told the interviewer that he experienced ‘episodes’ when overwhelmed wherein he was not him- self. He reported leaving kittens in a garbage can to die,” the decision said. When pressed about the injuries to the animals, Nichols conceded hitting kittens over the head with hard objects such as the leg of a stool, according to the ruling. Nichols lied to authorities about some of the animal deaths, including two rabbits. He claimed one was killed in a “freak accident” and the other died the following day of a broken heart. “The two rabbits were necropsied. Suffice it to say, neither died of a broken heart,” the decision said. “The Crown filed detailed necropsy reports specifying a spectrum of gruesome injuries, confirming the considerable force required to cause those injuries and establishing the moderate to severe pain the animals would have suffered.” Nichols claimed some of the deaths were due to dog attacks, but autopsies of the kittens revealed there were skull fractures and severe brain trauma. Some experienced cervical neck dis- location and on most of the bodies, there was evidence of acute blunt trauma, in- cluding hemorrhages and contusions across their bodies, the decision said. The judge’s decision detailed Nichols’s claims he blacked out during the offences and was using drugs at the time. Nichols, who was 27 at the time of the offences, told a pre-sentence report officer the second round of killings oc- curred in the context of mental-health difficulties, a relationship breakdown, drug use and suicidal ideation. Both the pre-sentence report and psychological assessment report point to likely diagnoses of multiple mental illnesses, but his moral culpability re- mains significant,” the judge wrote. “Mr. Nichols was in a position of trust vis a vis all the animals he killed. He did not kill a stray that wandered onto his property but rather animals he in- tentionally obtained from others with the undertaking that he would care for them,” Hewitt-Michta wrote. “While Mr. Nichols pled guilty and demonstrated remorse, he has been dis- honest and minimized the seriousness of the offences.” The court also imposed a lifetime ban on Nichols from owning or living in the same place as an animal. nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca Brandon man sentenced to five years in prison for animal-cruelty spree NICOLE BUFFIE ;