Western P.E.I. food bank says it needs steady funding from province to stay afloat

A food bank in western Prince Edward Island says it needs sustained funding from the province in order to continue serving its clients. 

In the P.E.I. legislature this week, O'Leary-Inverness Liberal MLA Robert Henderson raised concerns brought to him by the board of the West Prince Caring Cupboard. 

The food bank, which has depots in Tyne Valley, Bloomfield, Alberton and Tignish, served 70 per cent more clients last year and thus had to buy much more food to keep the doors open compared to previous years.  

Henderson asked the Progressive Conservative government to develop a policy for sustainable funding for food banks like the Caring Cupboard. 

"They have a reserve amount of funding, they get a fair bit of donations during the Christmas season… [but] they're concerned that they may run out, and they don't want to get into rationing food or picking and choosing who gets access to this service," he said.

The number of people using this food bank jumped by 70%. Now it needs help.

9 months ago

Duration 2:01

The West Prince Caring Cupboard is running out of money and wants help from the province. Rick Cameron, the group's president, says the number of clients is soaring. Add high grocery prices to mix and the food bank's finances are taking a hit.

Calling for dependable funding, Henderson said the province "just can't respond by throwing a cheque out here or there."  

During question period in the legislature this week, Agriculture Minister Bloyce Thompson said the province had already provided $20,000 in funding to the Caring Cupboard following Henderson's meeting with the board. 

$60,000 loss projected

Rick Cameron, president of the Caring Cupboard, echoed Henderson's call for continuous funding from government. 

He said the board has projected a budget loss this year of almost $60,000, so the recent government donation won't be enough to cover expenses and the organization will have to draw on the "rainy day reserve" from generous donations over the holidays.  

"Ideally we would see something coming in monthly that would allow us to mitigate most of that loss. I'm hoping that the provincial government will do everything they can for us," Cameron said. 

"We have more people coming in because times are tougher and we can't rely entirely on food donations, so… each of our locations [now] buys groceries each week."

The West Prince Caring Cupboard served 5,464 households last year, compared to the 3,214 it served in 2022. 

'It's no time to abandon them'

Not only are working families feeling the pinch of high prices due to inflation, Cameron said, but the region also saw significant layoffs in the fish packaging industry that hurt many temporary foreign workers. 

He said many can't draw employment insurance and can't work elsewhere because their permits are tied to their original employer.  

We feel we have a responsibility to our migrant workers, and the provincial government is a partner in arranging to have these folks come over here. It's no time to abandon them.— Rick Cameron

"A lot of them are in pretty desperate shape and they've contributed — not entirely but to some extent — to our numbers," Cameron said.

"We feel we have a responsibility to our migrant workers, and the provincial government is a partner in arranging to have these folks come over here.

"It's no time to abandon them. They need help when they need help."

In the legislature, Thompson promised to meet with the Caring Cupboard board to determine how government can help. 

Meanwhile, Cameron is writing a proposal that he hopes will lead to a sustainable provincial funding model for the West Prince food bank, and others across the Island.