The Quebec budget leaves food banks hungry at a time when they have never had so many mouths to feed. A large gap persists between the new amounts granted by the Legault government and the needs estimated by community organizations in the field.
In a pre-budget consultation, the Food Banks of Quebec (BAQ) asked for one-time emergency assistance of $24 million because of soaring food prices. The association also asked to increase the annual recurring funding by $5 million.
The budget, unveiled on Tuesday, instead provides for additional annual assistance of $2 million. “It is clearly insufficient, deplores the general manager, Martin Munger, in an interview. I have serious fears about the course of the year 2023. I think there will be queues for baskets that are too small for people who are food insecure. »
“Ambivalent” in relation to the budget, Mr. Munger nevertheless underlines the granting of an envelope of $5 million over four years to finance the infrastructure of food banks, exactly the amount requested by BAQ.
Soaring food inflation is putting a double strain on food bank operations. The foodstuffs they distribute cost more just when more households need help.
Before the pandemic, nearly 500,000 people visited a Quebec food bank each month. In 2022, this figure jumped to 671,000, according to the latest HungerCount, which is based on data collected in March 2022. Mr. Munger expects traffic to be even higher in 2023.
During the pre-budget consultations, BAQ had warned the government that the emergency aid of $6 million granted in December had already been used and that food banks would be faced with difficult choices from the beginning of April.
“We are in the process of distributing the last shipments and already the Harvests are starting to run out of stocks, warned Mr. Munger last week. There are starting to be gaps, less diversity. They’re having a hard time supplying the demand right now. »
The day after the budget, Mr. Munger takes this disappointment with diplomacy. He points out that the government has already provided ad hoc support in August and December of last year. He intends to take “his pilgrim’s staff” to convince the government to release more funds.
He says he is hopeful of getting a listening ear, given the rise in food insecurity. “I don’t think the government is going to leave people in a situation where they can’t eat properly. »