The heightened cost of living is now impacting the food that ends up on the table. According to the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit, almost one third of households in Simcoe County are facing food insecurity and local charities are stepping up to make sure no child is left hungry. “When we provide kids with access to nutritious food in schools, they learn better, they feel better, their health outcomes, education outcomes are exceptional, and even their social outcomes how they behave in class. A lot of that has to do with, are they able to have a full stomach with healthy, nutritious food?,” said Chris Peacock of The Sharing Place Food Centre. Volunteers in Orillia are packing up their new refrigerated truck and other trucks to deliver food to 4,000 kids at 29 different schools in and around the area. Karen Shuh with the Barrie Food Bank says, “Children are coming to school without having had a healthy breakfast and oftentimes a lunch as well. And so, children have a lot to worry about without having to worry about where their next meal is coming from.” An interactive map shows all the schools the Barrie Food Bank gives food to every two weeks. They feed 7,000 kids through breakfast, lunch, and snack programs. “Absolutely everyone is able to have the food. If there are snacks and kids are hungry throughout the day, absolutely. It’s an open program for all. And, yeah, we’re really proud of being able to offer that,” said Elaine Vodarek the principal at Harriett Todd Public School. Food banks around the region do get some grants from government including $136,000 to pay for the new refrigerated truck but they still need donations to fill those trucks, and the need is growing. Brian Shelley, CEO of United Way Simcoe Muskoka says, “Frankly, every community in Simcoe County could likely declare the same state of emergency that Orillia has. We are in a food insecurity crisis. Far too many are going without. Far too many are having to choose between what meal to eat and what bill to pay.” But for at least the kids that will eat this food, that’s not a choice they have to make.
