There were more than two million visits to food banks across the country in March, up six per compared with last year and 90 per higher than in 2019, a report found.
The research study encompassed 5,100 food banks and community organizations across Canada.
“This unthinkable rate of growth is not something food banks, nor people in Canada, can sustain. The damage is done, and people need immediate supports to help them recover. Everyone must come to the table to solve this problem. We cannot do it alone and need help to drive change,” Food Banks Canada CEO Kirstin Beardsley said in a news release.
BROOK JONES / FREE PRESS FILES
Harvest Manitoba volunteer services co-ordinator Snookie Tumlos sorts food in the warehouse in March 2023.
The report found visits are down 3.25 per cent in Manitoba compared with March 2023, the Food Banks Canada report states. Harvest Manitoba CEO Vince Barletta said in an email that that is correct, but the Winnipeg-based organization measures households served, not unique individuals.
Using Harvest Manitoba’s measurements, the number of average monthly visits to food banks across Manitoba was 20,221 in the 2023-24 fiscal year — an increase of 29 per cent compared with 2022-23.
Harvest Manitoba has already seen more visits in the fiscal year to date — 21,435. That’s an increase of six per cent compared with the same time in the previous fiscal year.
More to come.
fpcity@freepress.mb.ca
