Food bank operators calling on government to step up

With more and more people turning to food banks for help, operators in Windsor-Essex are looking for a government intervention.

“Our community can only do so much,” said Kids First Food Bank manager Jackie Bastien. “Our government really needs to step up and help us.”

The number of Canadians asking for help has risen substantially in recent years according to data released by Food Banks Canada.

Over 2-million visits were recorded in March of 2024, nearly double the amount of five years ago.

“People can't afford to pay the rent, buy groceries,” said June Muir, CEO of the UHC Hub of Opportunities. “We need affordable housing. People need help and I think our community needs to understand that food banks are running out of food.”

The Kids First Food Bank on Howard Avenue has items on some the shelves, but there’s also empty space on other shelves, even after being replenished three days ago.

“We've seen such an increase in level of people who are needing assistance that we're trying to keep up with the demand of everything,” said Bastien.

Bastien the demand overwhelming.

“I have a group of amazing volunteers and even the new ones coming in, they take it very personally because there are so many people in our community that need the help,” said Bastien.

Bastien says some people visit the food bank in tears.

The Hunger Count report released Monday shows one-third of food bank clients were children and 70 percent of people lived in market rent housing.

“Everybody is struggling day to day,” Bastien said. “We have clients who work full time, part time, and they're still struggling. So it's not just one class.”

According to Muir, food banks are burning out.

The UHC is feeding about 1,800 people a week. Food bank usage is up 52 per cent in our area since 2019 and the number of first time users went up 27 per cent last year.

“We need the government to look at social safety networks,” Muir suggested. “People can't afford to pay the rent, buy groceries. We need affordable housing. People need help.”