The Nova Scotia School Lunch Program will serve its first lunches this October. Throughout August and September, the Department is continuing to work with schools, regions and vendors to put the final touches on the program. These preparations include training staff and vendors, installing equipment, testing ordering technology and finalizing menu items.

Phase 1 of the school lunch program includes every school that has elementary school grades, which adds up to more than 75,000 students and potentially more than 13 million lunches served in the coming school year. It is a pay-what-you-can program, meaning families can choose to pay the full $6.50 cost of the lunch, part of the cost or nothing. All payment information is kept confidential.

Lunches will start in schools on October 1, 15 or 28, with ordering opening two weeks before the first lunches are served. Families will be able to choose between two lunch options every school day, with at least one vegetarian (no meat) lunch offered each day. In total, there will be 40 menu options that rotate weekly when the program starts in October. 

Each meal provides balanced nutrition and meets the standards outlined in Canada’s Food Guide and the Nova Scotia School Food and Nutrition Policy. The menu offers options that celebrate the diversity of Nova Scotian students, such as Acadian chicken fricot, murgh makhani (butter chicken), corn chowder with l’uskinikn (a traditional Mi’kmaw biscuit) and moujadara (a baked rice dish with lentils and caramelized onions). Popular student-approved favourites like macaroni and cheese and pizza are also on the menu.

Other school food programs, including the free breakfast program and snack programs will continue as usual.

Nova Scotians looking for information on the new school lunch program will be able to find it on a newly launched website, https://nslunch.ca/, which has answers to frequently asked questions, the list of more than 250 schools where lunch will be offered by the end of October, examples of meals and more. Program start dates for all Phase 1 schools, the full menu and the online ordering system will be added to the site throughout September.

School Supplies Support for Families

Families on income assistance will get more help with the cost of school supplies this year. Parents of children aged five to 18 will receive a one-time increase on their income assistance payment by the end of August. The benefit has also been extended this year to include four-year-olds attending pre-primary this fall.

The payment for children aged 13 to 18 will increase from $160 to $200. The payment for children aged five to 12 will increase from $80 to $100. Children who turn four by the end of December and are eligible for pre-primary in the fall will now receive a $100 payment. No application is required; the payment will be included on clients’ August 29 payment.

Supports are also available for families on income assistance to support older children and adults with costs of post-secondary education or employment-focused opportunities. The Youth Development Initiative provides eligible youth who are connected to the Department and are aged 12 to 20 with access to work placements, volunteering, leadership development, community projects and more, to help them reach their educational and career goals.

Income assistance clients and dependents may also be eligible for other career and educational programs, including EDGE, Skills2SucSEED and Career Rising.

Newborns Screened for Spinal Muscular Atrophy

Newborns across the Maritimes will now be screened for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), through a genetic test added to the Maritime Newborn Screening program. The screening, done at birth, will provide early diagnosis and access to care sooner for infants with the disorder.

The screening program expansion, which took effect August 19, is a partnership between the Province, the Maritime Newborn Screening program and Muscular Dystrophy Canada.

Muscular Dystrophy Canada committed $420,000 for equipment, training and validation work to begin screening for SMA, a genetic condition that leads to muscle weakness. It affects three to four newborns in the Maritimes each year. It is now one of 24 conditions covered by the screening program.

The Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC) released its first-quarter financial results on August 20. Total sales from April 1 to June 30, 2024, were up 1.5 per cent to $222.5 million, with an increase in both beverage alcohol and cannabis sales compared with the same time last year.

Beverage alcohol sales increased 0.7 per cent to $191.3 million, and cannabis sales increased 7.3 per cent to $31.2 million. Earnings decreased 0.5 per cent to $70.4 million.

Sales of Nova Scotia alcohol products increased by 5.4 per cent to $24.7 million. Locally produced ready-to-drink products lead the beverage alcohol category with an 11.2 per cent increase to $9.8 million. Local cannabis products decreased 1.4 per cent to $9.3 million; Nova Scotia cannabis products account for 29.9 per cent of all cannabis sales.

Other local product sales results include: craft beer increased 8.9 per cent to $8.4 million; wine decreased 7.3 per cent to $3.8 million and spirits decreased 3.5 per cent to $2.8 million.

YourHealthNS to Include Ultrasound Reports

Nova Scotians can now access more information about their ultrasound results through the YourHealthNS app. Ultrasound reports completed from August 5 onward will start to be available in the app as of August 19. The report includes the body part examined, the reason for the ultrasound, findings and a comparison with any previous ultrasounds. Reports completed after August 5 will be available through the app 14 days later.

Ultrasound reports will add to the information – date, time and location of the scan, body part scanned and the provider who requested the ultrasound – currently available through the app. Images will not be available.

Funding to Support Municipal Projects

The Province is investing in 62 municipal projects involving infrastructure improvements, innovation and community development across Nova Scotia. Through five provincial programs, they will receive funding to enhance local services, create job opportunities and beautify communities.

The Province is investing more than $2.3 million: 25 projects will receive a total of $539,014 through the Beautification and Streetscaping Program, which helps communities create inviting spaces and attract more visitors; it funds up to 50 per cent of the costs of eligible projects, up to a maximum $25,000; 12 projects will receive $230,504 under the Community Works Program, which creates job opportunities for youth and unemployed people to gain skills and experience in their fields; 4 projects will share a combined investment of $232,309 through the Flood Risk Infrastructure Investment Program, which promotes investment in infrastructure needed to protect communities from flooding; the program funds up to 50 per cent of eligible costs for each project

5 projects under the Municipal Innovation Program – which funds up to 75 per cent of regional co-operation projects to support the long-term sustainability of local governments – will receive $382,495; municipalities can apply for funding to support innovative approaches to regional collaboration and 16 projects under the Provincial Capital Assistance Program will receive $950,128; the program contributes up to 50 per cent of project costs toward priority municipal infrastructure projects, including water and wastewater infrastructure assessments, updates to storm water systems, and water treatment plant upgrades.

Nova Scotians who need to travel to other parts of the province for surgery will continue to receive support for travel and accommodation. The pilot, which began June 1, 2023, is extended to May 31, 2025. It provides reimbursement for: transportation costs at $0.58 per kilometre when using personal vehicles; accommodation costs of up to $85 per night if travelling more than 50 kilometres (one-way) and transportation and accommodation costs for someone to travel with the patient if necessary.

To be eligible for the program, Nova Scotians must: have a confirmed surgery, endoscopy or cystoscopy procedure date; be on the Nova Scotia Health wait list for surgery, or an endoscopy or cystoscopy procedure; be a resident of Nova Scotia with a valid health card; have a gross family income of less than $35,000 per year and not have private insurance that covers travel or accommodation costs.

People can apply at: https://beta.novascotia.ca/surgical-access-initiative-program

The Province is taking more action on housing by reducing barriers for condominium developments.

The changes will lower overall fees for most new and phased projects, making large-scale condo developments more cost-effective.

The new fee structure will combine the current base amount with a new per-unit fee. The previous value-based structure charged developers a per-unit fee based on the advertised sale price, which resulted in high registration fees for large developments.

The amendments, in regulations under the Condominium Act, will make it easier for developers to predict in advance the fees they will owe. The changes will also result in an overall reduction in the total registration fees levied by the government.

Premier Tim Houston announced on August 9, that Stephen Moore has been appointed Communications Director for the Premier’s Office. Mr. Moore is currently the Executive Director of Forest Nova Scotia. Prior to that, he held positions at Saint Mary’s University and MQO Research, as well as director of communications for the Premier’s Office from 2014 to 2018. Mr. Moore’s appointment became effective August 19.

The current tourism marketing agency of record contract is held by m5 Marketing Communications and expires March 31, 2025.

Provincewide Tree Planting Started

Some neighbourhoods in Upper Tantallon/Hammonds Plains are getting new trees planted to replace many that were burned in the May 2023 wildfire. "We’ve committed to planting 21 million trees in Nova Scotia as part of a national effort to support biodiversity, carbon capture and quality of life in our communities. This work also supports ecological forestry and green jobs to boost our rural economy," said Kent Smith, acting Minister of Natural Resources and Renewables. "Along with our federal partners, we’re funding tree-planting projects across the province. I’m very happy that some of the first are helping restore neighbourhoods that were devastated by last year’s wildfire."

Residents in the Westwood Hills, Highland Park and Perry Pond neighbourhoods formed groups to apply to Thriving Forests – the program co-ordinating tree planting in Nova Scotia. About 118,000 trees will be planted this fall on residential properties and in municipal parks in these neighbourhoods.

These projects are among 23 around the province that have been approved to date. In total, more than 570,000 trees will be planted this fall with about $974,000 in funding. The trees are a mix of red and white spruce, white pine, tamarack, hemlock, red and sugar maple, yellow birch and red oak.

Planting 21 million trees is a commitment in Our Climate, Our Future: Nova Scotia’s Climate Change Plan for Clean Growth. The plan aims to create a cleaner, healthier and more sustainable future for all Nova Scotians. It includes initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, switch to clean energy and transportation, create a clean economy, make homes and buildings energy efficient and able to stand up to the impacts of climate change, and help Nova Scotians adapt to the changing climate.

The first 23 Thriving Forests projects included two from Colchester included: private landowner, Debert and Shannex – projects in Dartmouth, Sydney and Truro.