P.E.I. families seek help as food banks face holiday surge

Food banks across Prince Edward Island are reporting an increase in demand this holiday season, as rising living costs strain budgets. Maria Sarrouh reports.

For many food banks across Canada, this is the busiest stretch of the year and P.E.I. is no exception, with charities saying the need is up.

At the Upper Room Hospitality Ministry (URHM) food bank in Charlottetown, staff and volunteers were in the final push of their holiday preparations, as families came in to pick up about 1,200 Christmas hampers.

Executive director Mike MacDonald said that number has grown, and the charity provided more than 1,000 hampers last year.

“It’s the cost of groceries, the cost of rent, the cost of keeping our car running,” he said. “Those are the things that we hear consistently. It’s just that things are so expensive.”

MacDonald, who also leads P.E.I. Food Banks, said the Upper Room is seeing more working-class families asking for help, along with seniors on pensions and other fixed incomes.

“Almost 35 per cent of people using P.E.I. food banks are employed,” MacDonald said. “It’s a pretty staggering number.”

URHM says demand for its services is up 110 per cent since 2019, including a 52 per cent increase since November 2022. Those local numbers mirror national data, with Food Banks Canada reporting that usage has doubled since March 2019.

In Summerside, the Salvation Army said it has already distributed hundreds of holiday hampers, with calls still coming in.

“It was about 312 Christmas hampers. So, we did see a very big demand this year,” said Phyllis Cormier, community family services co-ordinator with the organization.

Cormier added that the Salvation Army is also seeing more working-class families walk through their doors.

“I think it’s due to inflation and the increased cost of living,” she said.

When it comes to donations, both charities say every bit helps year-round.

Cormier said turkeys are in high demand right now, along with other kinds of meat and non-perishables. She said the Salvation Army is still trying to help callers who are requesting hampers.