Food bank use in Canada remains disturbingly high. Cuts to the welfare system in the 1990s, changes in employment and wages, and mismanaged public spending drove up the number of Canadians accessing food banks. In March 2008, over 700,000 Canadians turned to food banks.
As Canada moves deeper into recession and more Canadians seek transitional support from a hollowed out welfare system, we should expect “dramatic increases” in food bank use and food insecurity.
These conclusions come from a new report on welfare policy and food insecurity from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives‘ Economic Security Project.
In addition to highlighting the coming challenges for both the welfare system and our networks of food banks, the study assembles some worrying data about food bank use:
- Approximately sixty percent of adult respondents to their survey reported that they lived with children.
- Three quarters of users were born in Canada.
- Three quarters report income below $15,000, a number below the poverty line even for a single person.
The study suggests that the so-called “economic boom” actually had a negative impact on food security. Until very recently, food bank use was increasing in Canada, peaking in 2004. This period of rising food bank use correlates less with the fluctuating unemployment rate than with the consistent decline of Canadians receiving welfare support.
In their final analysis, the data showed that a 10 percent decrease in welfare rolls corresponded to a 4.2 percent increase in food bank use. Through the mid-1990s and the last decade, welfare reforms that limited access to welfare and cut welfare benefits decreased our food security.
The study concludes that additional negative impacts were mitigated by the “growing” Canadian economy. Of course, this growth was both artificial and temporary. The reordering of our false economy in the coming months will put tremendous pressure on charitable food networks — and, as the report offers, changes to our welfare system will only worsen the impact.
CCPA compiled ten policy recommendations to help offset rising food insecurity and ensure Canadians have access and rights to sufficient and nutritious food.
- Access to welfare as a right
- Set income assistance thresholds by province
- Immediately increase income assistance rates
- Index income assistance rates by cost of living
- Establish an appropriate minimum wage, linked to cost of living
- Increase the Canada Child Tax Benefit to $5,100
- Develop quality, affordable child care
- Provide education and training to upgrade skills
- Establishing appropriate financial support for refugees and immigrants
- Address housing affordability
All sensible, and many worthwhile suggestions in their own right.
Canadians must take an active role in improving our genuine security — and this, above all else, means food and water. Ensuring access to safe, affordable, and nutritious food is a critical task. While we’re at it: creating jobs in a local food economy, encouraging consumption of regionally produced and processed food, and reducing our dependence on dangerous energy and fragile distribution networks can all be part of addressing food security.
And a special thanks to the volunteers, workers, and supporters at Canada’s food banks. This study once again emphasizes the challenging environment they work in and the difficulties and opportunities ahead.
