Canada in Brief, May 31 - June 6

Packaged meat at a grocery store in Montreal. A national study says confusing and unnecessary best-by labels on food are a major cause of food waste in Canada. (The Canadian Press/Ryan Remiorz)

Improve best-before labels to reduce food waste, confusion: Study

A national study says confusing and unnecessary best-before labels are a major cause of food waste in Canada.

The National Zero Waste Council says consumers are confused about what best-before labels actually mean.

It says most dates that appear on products refer only to peak quality and have little to do with whether the food is healthy to eat.

Research has found that almost 400 kilograms of food per person are lost or wasted in Canada every year—one of the highest totals in the world. The council says consumers are responsible for almost half that waste.

Historical association rebrands award named for John A. Macdonald

A Canadian historical association is stripping the name of the country’s first prime minister from one of its top honours.

John A. Macdonald’s place in Canadian history was debated by many of the scholars who know it best at the Canadian Historical Association’s annual meeting in Regina on May 29.

Members of the association voted overwhelmingly to rename the Sir John A. Macdonald Prize to the CHA Prize for Best Scholarly Book in Canadian History.

The association’s president says the new title is more in line with the intentions of the $5,000 prize, which recognizes non-fiction writing that’s been deemed to have made a significant contribution to the study of Canadian history.

Alberta zoo fined $500 after ice cream-eating bear video

A central Alberta zoo must pay $500 in fines after taking a bear for ice cream at a drive-thru.

A video posted on social media in January by Discovery Wildlife Park in Innisfail, Alta., showed a one-year-old captive bear named Berkley leaning out a truck’s window and being hand-fed ice cream by the owner of the local Dairy Queen.

Officials with the province investigated and charged the zoo with two counts of violating a licence or permit under the Wildlife Act.

One count stems from the bear being taken for ice cream, while the other relates to an employee who brought an orphaned bear cub home to foster in 2017.

NL village looking to get rid of massive, long-dead whale

A tiny Newfoundland village is hoping to quickly remove the massive body of a humpback whale that has been stuck there since last fall, fearing the impending odour and mess as warmer weather approaches.

The whale ’s body was frozen and covered with snow for the winter months in Nameless Cove but has now become an urgent issue for the village.

Hank Diamond, a member of the local service district committee, says Nameless Cove is waiting on a price quote from contractors and is hoping for provincial assistance.

The process will likely involve towing the body to another location to decompose or be buried away from a settlement.

With files from The Canadian Press