Statement made on 26 May 2010 by Senator Jane Cordy
Hon. Jane Cordy:
Honourable senators, Tuesday, June 1, is Hunger Awareness Day in Canada. Hunger Awareness Day is a growing movement to raise awareness about the solvable problem of hunger in Canada, a problem that should be solved because we live in a country with so much. Food banks across the country host events on Hunger Awareness Day to highlight the work they do and to shed light on the realities of Canadians who rely on food banks.
Hunger in Canada exists because deep and persistent poverty continues in this country. For more than a decade, diverse and interrelated factors have sustained this situation: a labour market that fails to provide enough jobs with stable, liveable wages; a rise in precarious and non-standard employment; and an income security system that does not provide sufficient financial support for those in need. There is a lack of safe, affordable social housing and there is a lack of accessible and affordable child care. People living in poverty must turn to food banks to help them meet this most basic need of having food.
Over the past year and a half, Canada has been struggling to cope with the current recession. As a result, in 2009, Canadian food banks saw the largest year-over-year increase of usage by Canadians on record. In 2009, nearly 800,000 people were assisted each month by a food bank in Canada. This number was 18 per cent higher than in 2008. In March 2009, 72,000 people walked through the doors of a food bank for the first time.
In Nova Scotia, Feed Nova Scotia is the provincial food collection and distribution centre for approximately 150 food banks and for meal programs across Nova Scotia. The centre serves at least 38,000 Nova Scotians each month. Feed Nova Scotia is also dedicated to finding long-term solutions to poverty and chronic hunger that will reduce the need for food banks in Nova Scotia. We know that food banks were supposed to be a temporary measure, and it is most unfortunate that their usage is increasing.
On June 1, food banks across Canada will hold events, open houses and community activities to spread the word about their important work to alleviate hunger. The food banks will encourage Canadians to take action to support those in need in their communities. Far too many Canadians face the harsh reality of worrying about how they will feed their families, and they must rely on food banks to do so.
In my province, Feed Nova Scotia will bring attention to the realities of hunger by forming a Nova Scotia hunger line-up in various regions of the province, each holding banners that proclaim, "Hunger is in our community and we want to help." For 15 minutes, people will stand in unison to acknowledge the severity of hunger and poverty and to show respectfully their support for change.
I encourage all senators to participate in helping to bring an end to hunger and poverty in this country. The excellent Senate report, In From the Margins: A Call to Action on Poverty, Housing and Homelessness, tabled by the Social Affairs, Science and Technology Committee, provides recommendations to eliminate poverty in Canada. The implementation of these recommendations would be a great way to start.