THUNDER BAY -- With a 47 per cent increase in first-time users this year, the Regional Food Distribution Network is worried about being able to feed the region.
Executive director Volker Kromm said the number spiked this year compared to last with more people not only using food banks for the first time, but also using multiple food banks to help make ends meet.
“It’s a lot,” he said Monday afternoon, noting the food banks users are often seniors, students and recently there has been an increase in the number of single parents.
“It’s those individuals that are struggling.”
Kromm said while the economy may be improving, 80 per cent of the jobs created since 2008 have been temporary.
“That’s no different here in Thunder Bay. A lot of our people that are working poor are resorting to having multiple jobs to make ends meet and even at minimum wage, that’s a really tough thing to do given the unavailability housing and the high price of food,” he said.
“There are a lot of things going against some of the people that at that income level.”
Province-wide, first-time food bank users have gone up 20 per cent and although the Ontario Association of Food Banks has been doing a great job of providing 50 per cent more healthy food, especially high-protein foods, Kromm said they are worried about being able to feed the people they serve.
“For that kind of demand and the face we’re trying to feed the people high-protein foods, we may not be able to meet that demand,” he said.
It’s a perennial problem and the RFDA is always looking for more donations and help from local farmers to source more food.
If people are making big meals and shopping, Kromm asks they consider buying a little extra to donate and monetary donations are always welcome as they help the association purchase bulk food.
