3.8 million people in Canada cannot access the food they need. Close to 1 million people use food banks each month. October 17th is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. The B.C. Poverty Reduction Coalition has launched an awareness and advocacy plan: Chew on This. According to the 2013 Hunger Count published by Food Banks Canada, some population groups face a higher risk of living in poverty for example, older single people, single-parent families, individuals receiving social assistance,people with disabilities, new immigrants, and Aboriginal people. But hunger, food insecurity, and poverty can happen to anyone:
- 22% of households helped by food banks are two-parent families
- 12% of households assisted gain the majority of their income from employment; another 5% are on Employment insurance
- 7% of individuals who receive food from a food bank live primarily on pension income (rising to nearly 10% in small towns and rural areas).
- 7% of households helped are homeowners (increasing to 15% in small towns and rural areas).
In 2014/15, United Way British Columbia will invest $400,000 in 20 agencies to run food programs to alleviate hunger for children and seniors and increase people’s capacity to access, grow and prepare nutritious food. Food insecurity, lack of access to affordable housing and poverty are social determinants of health that too often combine to make children and seniors more isolated and more vulnerable in our region. By creating sustainable sources of food and providing vulnerable people nutrition, we’re contributing to greater health conditions and social inclusion among the most vulnerable in our community.
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