The number of Canadians applying for aid from food banks jumped by a record 17.6 percent in March on the year, according to a report released Tuesday by Food Banks Canada.
As a result of growing poverty brought about by the economic recession, a total of 794,738 people turned to food banks in March, an increase of 17.6 percent from the same month in 2008. This was the largest growth since 1997.
Almost four in 10 food bank users were under the age of 18, and a significant number, almost one in 10, were first-time users, according to
the report.
At a press conference in Ottawa, Katharine Schmidt, executive director of Food Banks Canada, blamed the spike in demand on the economic recession, which she said had thrown more people out of work or into lower paying or part-time jobs.
She called for a post-recession economic plan that takes the needs of the most vulnerable members of society into account. Schmidt also appealed
for easier access to richer unemployment insurance benefits, a national anti-poverty strategy and other actions to eradicate poverty.
"We do live in such a prosperous country, but it's about nine percent of the population living unfortunately below the poverty line ... That is
really one of our key challenges," Schmidt told Xinhua at the press conference.
A food bank is a non-profit organization which distributes food stuffs from donators to charitable organizations or non-profit agencies from warehouses.
Food Bank Canada's mission is to enable an effective food bank community that addresses the short-term need for food and long-term solutions to reduce hunger in Canada.