Steinbach charities see rising demand as fuel prices spike

Steinbach food banks and charities are seeing extra demand and facing supply shortages as more families feel the squeeze from soaring fuel prices.

Fuel costs have been on the rise since Israel and The United States attacked Iran on Feb. 28, striking multiple targets throughout the middle eastern nation and killing its Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Gas prices in Manitoba jumped from 122.7 cents per litre on Feb. 21 to 169.7 on March 24.

Ken Dyck, executive director of South East Helping Hands, said donations aren’t keeping up with the rising number of people. He lays blame on gas prices forcing more people to rely on charitable support.

”If you’re living sort of paycheck to paycheck, that changes things right away,” he said.

The number of families coming in search of food can range from 350 to 425 any week, Dyck said. The growing demand has left shortages in necessary items that were previously staples. Dyck said there are at least 20 empty spots that would previously store pallets of items such as beans, mixed vegetables and soups.

On first glance, the warehouse appears full of pallets, but Dyck said much of the stock available are “filler items” like peanut butter, chips and crackers.

Families haven’t seen any impact yet, but if the shortages continue, he will be forced to reduce the variety of items given out.

“If they get pasta two or three times in a row, that’s when they’re going to start noticing it…I try to change it up all the time, and it gets harder to try to come up with, ‘Okay, what are we doing next,’” he said.

The non-profit does bolster supplies through buying groceries. However, Dyck spent $3,500 on food for one week and said it’s far from sustainable if the food banks starts relying on it.

To up the dwindling stock, South East Helping Hands coordinated an emergency food drive on March 25 with Sobeys. Dyck hopes to hold out until its other major food drives during the September Pioneer Days Parade and Christmas.

“Anytime I ask the community for help, they step up to the plate,” he said.

Jo-Anne Dalton, executive director of Steinbach Family Resource Centre, has also seen more families come use its programming and ask for items like diapers and baby formula.

“If your gas and transportation, is an absolute necessity to get to work or to be able to transport where you need to be, or your rent increases, or the cost of keeping a roof over your head, then the flexible costs decrease, and then you do have less funds available for food, snacks, and the things that you know are not absolutely necessities to your day to day,” she said.

Some families the non-profit helps have stopped coming to the group programs hosted at the centre because of the fuel strain and are cutting back on using vehicles. Dalton highlighted one-car households as one segment feeling pressures.

Other families are organizing their trips to go to food banks, the centre and then the grocery store to efficiently use their vehicles and their funds for grocery shopping, she added.

“We know that ultimately affects the children we’re seeing the most because that means you know that that’s less nutrient dense, healthy produce which is exorbitant in price compared to a box of granola bars that are going to last a month,” Dalton said.