Alberta food bank surge: sign of bad times for all?

mentalfloss

Prickly Curmudgeon Smiter
Jun 28, 2010
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Alberta food bank surge: sign of bad times for all?

The number of people turning to food banks is surging across Alberta and inching up in other parts of the country.

With so many rumblings of a recession, those on the front lines believe the upswing could be a sign of tough times ahead for much of Canada.

When the economy's in trouble, they say, the early signs appear at the food bank. It's where people turn when their employment insurance runs out or their savings account runs dry.

"It's where they go when they hit the wall," Gail Nyberg with Toronto's Daily Bread Food Bank told CBC News. "It's actually gauging those most vulnerable."

Bad signs in Alberta

Due to a slow down in the oil patch, food banks across Alberta are suddenly overrun with demand. Today, Alberta Food Banks is issuing a news release with an urgent call for donations, saying "the shelves are bare" at many locations.

"I've personally talked to a dozen food banks in the last two to three months and I can't think of one that has said their numbers haven't increased," executive director Stephanie Rigby said. "We know that there may be more to come, and I know the food banks are bracing."

Many newcomers, such as Pamela in Edmonton, are first-time users. "I never thought it would come to this," she said about seeking donated food.

Until she was laid off at Christmas, Pamela was earning $38 an hour working in the oil industry. We are withholding her last name because she worries publishing it will hurt her chances of landing another job.

Pamela says she and her husband, who's off work due to an injury, finally decided to turn to the food bank because they're running out of cash. They can barely keep up with their bills and are struggling to make the minimum payments on $17,000 in credit-card debt they've racked up to cover costs.

"We've fallen upon hard times," Pamela said, adding that it's "a common experience" in oil country.

..more...

http://www.cbc.ca/m/news/business/alberta-food-bank-surge-sign-of-bad-times-for-all-1.3160641
 

grainfedpraiboy

Electoral Member
Mar 15, 2009
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Alberta The Last Best West
If you build it they will come.

I give part of what I produce away because charity for my fellow countrymen in my opinion is a higher form of citizenship. If that charity is abused it says more about them than me.

The number of people turning to food banks is surging across Alberta and inching up in other parts of the country.

In Ft. Mac on my last trip I observed the stores and streets are virtually empty. Rental rates have dropped from an average of 4000 to around 2500. Some of my customers have cancelled service or reduced service calls citing the downturn. However, the majority of people newly using food banks are those who failed to properly manage their income during the growth period.