FOOD BANKS SEEING IMPACT OF RISING COST OF LIVING

Danielle injured her back in a workplace accident and has relied on the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) for four years.

The woman, whose name the newspaper agreed to withhold, receives $1,256 per month from ODSP — an amount that hasn't changed in the four years she has been receiving assistance. While $150 used to provide her groceries for the month — albeit, supplemented by the Food With Grace Waterdown Food Bank - due to inflation and rising cost of living, her monthly groceries now cost over $300.

That's not to mention her housing expenses. ODSP supplies $489 for housing, far less than her $800 rent. But in fact, Danielle said, she is lucky, as she has had the same apartment for five years — and her landlord could easily be getting double for it.

"I'm definitely worried all the time," she said. "I never take for granted what I have, because it easily could go away."

Although she has been supplementing her food needs with the food bank for three years — "an absolute lifeline," she said — the rising cost of living is a concern and is now forcing her into credit card debt.

"I'm not putting it out there because I want anyone to feel sorry for me, because I'm very grateful for what I have. I have a good life; it's just scary sometimes."

Danielle is far from alone in dealing with the rising costs.

Statistics Canada reported the national inflation rate jumped to a

31-year high in March of 6.7 per cent — with all eight categories of the economy they track rising. These include food, energy, shelter and transportation costs.

Notably, gasoline costs rose by 39.8 per cent in the past year, which has an outsized impact on inflation, including grocery bills, up 8.7 per cent, and shipping and transportation costs get added to everything else.

Vivian Kinnear, coordinator for the Glanbrook Food Bank, said that while the number of clients they serve has remained pretty steady throughout the pandemic, "I'm finding more and more, they're taking everything we offer and changing their menu plan ... in order to have groceries, based on what we have available."

She said clients have also been shifting their eating habits to consuming canned goods more.

"They've stated that the cost of fresh vegetables and things like that has taken them out of the ability to cook that way at home."

Kinnear noted that the financial support received from the community around Christmas is largely how she's able to keep the high demand items stocked: coffee, tea, sugar and especially hygiene products, such as toilet paper, soap, deodorant, etc., which "are expensive to purchase," so are donated less often.

Coupled with that is the fact that "(When) the summer comes along, nobody's thinking about us," Kinnear said, and donation levels drop off.

At the Flamborough Food Bank, managing director Jim Leamen is expecting the number of clients they serve to grow, in part due to inflation and the rising cost of living. "I definitely expect an increase in need." Leamen said he has increased the food bank's budget by 35 per cent to try to account for inflation in food costs.

"We have planned for that, but is it a concern? Of course," he said. "We're spending far more money on food than we were a year ago.

"For the food bank, it's just going to be increased expenses."

Leamen said there are also concerns about inflation impacting donations to the

food bank.

"As people need to be more aware of where their money is going, I would think one of the first things out of the budget would be charitable donation."

STORY BEHIND THE STORY: As inflation and the cost of living rises across the country, we wanted to check in with local food banks to see how they and their clients are managing.