What To Do If You Are Experiencing Food Insecurity in Halifax: A Brief Primer
Inflation, soaring housing costs, continually escalating prices at the grocery store — it’s hard just trying to exist these days.
Nova Scotia has the highest rate of food insecurity among all Canadian provinces. Meanwhile, Halifax also has one of the highest rates of food insecurity among Canadian cities. It is estimated that 16% of households in the Halifax area grapple with food insecurity.*
Here’s what to do if you are experiencing food insecurity in Halifax and could use some support during these trying times.
BEGIN WITH FEED NOVA SCOTIA
Feed Nova Scotia is the umbrella organization for food banks across the province. They’re involved with 140 member agencies and have been operating for over 30 years.
Although each member agency works slightly differently, Feed Nova Scotia’s website has general information on what to expect when visiting a food bank. You can find that page here:
https://www.feednovascotia.ca/find-food/what-to-expect
Feed Nova Scotia has an online resource where you can find the food banks closest to you by searching using your address or city/town.
CONTACT 211
If using Feed Nova Scotia’s online tool isn’t working for you, they recommend calling 211 or visiting 211’s website:
As we mentioned in our post on Halifax’s various hotlines (you can find it here), 211 is a free, confidential referral service that can connect you to the community and social services you need. They’ll be able to help you locate a food bank or meal program in your area.
CHECK OUT THESE RESOURCES
Using Feed Nova Scotia’s online tool, we found the following food banks and meal programs in the Halifax region that you can contact or visit for assistance:
Brunswick Street Mission Food Bank
Brunswick Street Mission Breakfast program (meal program)
Canadian Mental Health Association — Halifax Caring & Sharing (meal program, drop-in, snack service)
Emmanuel Anglican Church Food Bank
Dalhousie University Student Union Food Bank (students only)
Halifax West Ecumenical Food Bank
Jesus House Halifax (food bank)
Mount Saint Vincent University Student’s Union Food Bank (students only)
Mulgrave Park Tenants Association (food bank)
Salvation Army Family Services (food bank)
SMU Community Food Room (students only, food bank)
St. George’s Soup Kitchen (meal program)
St. Mark’s Food Bank
St. Matthew’s United Church Breakfast Program (meal program)
St. Paul’s Family Resources Institute Inc. (food bank)
The Stepping Stone Association (drop-in, snack service)
Sunday Supper Program (meal program)
Sunscad (Student Union of NS College of Art & Design, food bank)
West End Community Food Bank (food bank)
The right to food is a fundamental human right and these resources are available to help.
*These statistics are taken from the Ecology Action Centre (EAC) website.
Lead Photo: Getty Images x Unsplash+