The federal government overhauled Canada’s Food Guide seven years ago, and while many celebrated the changes at the time, questions are now being raised about the document’s practicality.

The changes encourage Canadians to focus on plant-based eating, and away from traditional food groups.

Sylvain Charlebois, who is the director of the Agri-Food Analytics Lab at Dalhousie University, says government needs to make the food guide more “real.”

He says it needs to reflect people’s habits and Canadian culture.

He says it is important to encourage people to eat real food, but the guide also needs to “feel real” and “feel Canadian.”

Charlebois argues that food is about culture, and if that is forgotten he is not sure if the guide is valuable. He says if all countries followed similar dietary sciences, everyone would be eating the same thing but “that’s not how food works.”