Food Banks Canada, a national charitable organization dedicated to helping Canadians living with food insecurity, recently released their 2015 HungerCount report. The document presents the results from an annual study on hunger and food bank use across the country, as well as makes recommendations for positive change.
A few key stats pulled from the report:
• 852,137 Canadians turn to food banks each month
• Food bank use in March was 1.3 per cent higher compared to the same period last year
• Five per cent of households accessing food banks are homeless
HungerCount has put forth four broad recommendations to all levels of government, as follows:
- Create a basic income to replace provincial social assistance programs
- Increase the availability of affordable housing
- Reinstate and enhance employment and training supports for Canadians with low literacy levels
- Increase access to traditional foods and reduce the cost of store-bought foods in northern communities
Click the link above to see the full report.
