The number of people using food banks across the country surged to an all-time high earlier this year with high inflation and low social assistance rates cited as key factors, a new report from Food Banks Canada indicates.
In the Lower Mainland, food bank services are also in high demand and rates are increasing.
A 29 per cent increase in food bank use was recorded in Greater Vancouver from 2021 to 2022, according to the Food Banks Canada report.
“(Right now) we’re actually adding about 1,000 people a month that are signing up that have never used a food bank before,” said David Long, Greater Vancouver Food Bank’s CEO.
That’s 14,000 people a month and another 20,000 through food bank partners and agencies, according to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank.
Last March, there were 1.5 million visits to food banks in the country, a 15 per cent increase from the year before and a 35 per cent increase compared to three years ago. It was the highest use on record for food banks in Canada.
“There’s no reason to believe the food prices are going to come down anytime soon. This is something we are bracing ourselves for,” Dan Huang-Taylor, Food Banks BC’s executive director.
Food banks are urging community members to either donate food or volunteer as they head into the Christmas season, the busiest time of year for the service.
—With files from Canadian Press.