'We need help': Food banks report bare shelves across Newfoundland and Labrador

Some food banks across the province are struggling to stock shelves ahead of the new school year. 

"It's been nuts how many people are signing up [for food] … We found we had a huge intake for families this summer and we fed people and that's basically why our shelves are empty," says Kerri Abbott, who runs the St. Vincent de Paul food bank in Carbonear.

"For us not to have granola bars, this has never happened in the four or five years that I've been there."

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Abbott said the bare shelves are due to a double-whammy: a dip in donations combined with more people relying on the organization — both of which are fuelled by a less-than-stellar economy.

"On Monday, we had five new households sign up, and that's a regular week now," she told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show.

She said some individuals who come in asking for help remain top of mind, including a man in his 60s who came to the St. Vincent de Paul food bank for the first time last week. 

"He had severe diabetes. He had a chronic heart condition and he walked — he walked from across Carbonear to a government office who told him about the food bank, and then he had to walk the rest of the way across Carbonear to get to us," said Abbott. "And it was one of those hot days, so by the time he showed up, he was shaky, he was clammy, he was pale … we were ready to call the ambulance."

Abbott said the man told them he had been living on a spoonful of peanut butter for the last couple of days for his meals.

In Gander, 'food is low and we need help'

In another part of Newfoundland, bare shelves are also a cause for concern, said Wanda Loder, part of the Salvation Army's family services branch in Gander. 

"Especially going back to school, where [students] have to take their lunches to school and right now we have very [little] to give," said Loder. 

She said that food bank has served an average of 180 households since May, which she said is an increase compared with previous years. 

"The dollar is not stretching so far these days," she told CBC Radio's Central Morning Show. 

Loder said while the organization hasn't had to turn people away, the amount of food each household is given is less than in previous years. 

"Right now food is low and we need help," she said.

'I think I cried every day'

In St. John's, the Bridges to Hope food bank has experienced a situation similar to its counterparts in Gander and Carbonear.

"It's been a troublesome summer," said organizer Jody Williams.

He estimates there has been a 20 per cent increase in people requesting food at the Cookstown Road location over last summer, fuelled by an uptick in seniors, youth and people who can't work due to physical or mental health problems. 

"It was very surprising and shocking and sad. My first week, I think I cried every day," Williams told CBC Radio's St. John's Morning Show.

He said the economy can't be counted on to rebound instantly, so he plans to try to convince more companies to donate food, which can be difficult if they're headquartered outside the province. 

"My plan now for this year is to kind of start beating away at that a little bit and creating some awareness and see if we can get that wall down  … meeting with managers of some of these bigger chains," Williams said.

As for Abbott at the Carbonear facility, she urges people not to wait to lend a hand, since Christmas is typically a busy donation time. 

"Remember, hunger is year-round," she said.