Money from this charity go towards Winnipeg Harvest and The Christmas Cheerboard


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Winnipeg Harvest


five myths about hunger and harvest

• People using Winnipeg Harvest are too lazy to work.
  
  At least half of the volunteers at Winnipeg Harvest are people who need emergency food themselves and who work hard to give something back. The reasons people find themselves in difficulty are many: some are students juggling loans and part-time jobs; some experience an unexpected illness in the family and loss of income as a result; marriage break-up’s often lead to less family income; many struggle to make ends meet with small disability or social assistance cheques or are seniors on fixed incomes with rising house expenses; 18% are people who work full or part time or are between jobs and collecting employment insurance. No one chooses to be poor or hungry.
  

• People use Winnipeg Harvest like a free grocery store.
  
  People call Harvest and make an appointment and can only access emergency food twice a month from the food bank. They are registered through their Manitoba medical number. The emergency food they receive lasts approximately two days. 15.5% of people needing food through Winnipeg Harvest had only one appointment in 2004, suggesting short-lived emergencies like sudden illness or loss of job.
• My tax dollars are being wasted at the food bank.
  
  Winnipeg Harvest does not receive operational funds from governments or the United Way. We rely on donations of food, time and money from the community. Last year, almost eight million pounds of food moved through our warehouse to neighbourhood food banks. Much of this food is inside damaged packages or dented containers but is still of good quality. Twenty years ago it would have ended up in the landfill. Now this food comes to Harvest to feed the hungry. This operates without tax dollars.
• Children rely on Winnipeg Harvest because their parents waste money gambling and smoking.
  
  Almost half of the people who are poor in Canada are single mothers. Manitoba continues to have among the worst child poverty rates in the country. Children are poor because their parents are poor. A Canadian study shows after a marriage separation, women immediately lose 23% of family income. Poor people spend a disproportionate amount of their incomes on rent and often take money from their food budget to cover shelter expenses. Parents who are poor routinely report going without food themselves to make sure their children eat. Cigarettes are an addiction and many believe smoking helps reduce depression and suppress appetites. Lottery tickets and other forms of gambling are advertised representing hope of escape.
• Poor people don’t know how to budget properly.
  
  People working full time earning minimum wage make just over $12,000 annually. Welfare rates are similar. It costs over $7,000 annually to rent a two bedroom apartment. It takes much creativity, and sacrifice, to pay for everything else on just $5,000 annually: food, transportation, clothing, heating, phone, childcare, medications and dental care. Budgeting is not the problem. Not enough money to make ends meet is the problem, leading many to the food bank.

Winnipeg Harvest Overview We are a non-profit, community-based organization. We collect and share surplus food with people who are hungry. Our ultimate goal is to eliminate the need for food banks in our community.

• Winnipeg Harvest was founded in 1984 by Lee Newton, and the warehouse opened its doors in 1985. Harvest operates independent of government support.
• Harvest responds to two conditions: hungry people and surplus food.
  
• Harvest looks to our community for support in terms of food, time and money.
• Surplus food is harvested from food manufacturers and distributors, farmers and gardeners, and through food drives, special events and individual donations.
• Harvest packages and distributes this food to more than 300 neighbourhood outlets in Winnipeg and sixteen food banks in rural Manitoba, which then give food to people in their community.
• In its first year of operation, Harvest distributed 200,000 pounds of food. In 2005, approximately 8 million pounds of food moved through our warehouse. That amount of food would fill the Winnipeg Stadium waist deep, six times over.
• In 2005, Harvest distributed food each month to 39,265 people. That is almost the entire population of Brandon, Manitoba’s second largest city.
• 47% of people receiving food from Harvest are children. That is 18,148 per month.
• Approximately half of Harvest volunteers are people who need to use a food bank.
• The ratio of volunteer hours to paid staff hours is 8:1. In 2005, more than 200,000 volunteer hours were donated to Harvest. Volunteer time equates to 100 full time staff working year round.
• Harvest receives monetary help from a variety of sources, such as foundations, service clubs and individuals. People can also donate through planned gifts and memorials.
• Harvest is a founding member of the Canadian Association of Food Banks and adheres to a national Code of Ethics.
• Harvest conducts surveys on hunger and poverty in Manitoba. It shares these statistics with social agencies, legislators, researchers, faith communities, universities, schools, and the general public.

Source: Winnipeg Harvest Inc. Charitable registration number: 13179 2616 RR0001 Poverty in Manitoba
MANITOBA
Prepared by Karen Flett, Winnipeg Harvest
Individuals assisted: 43,563 (3.7% of provincial population)
Percent children: 47%
Percent reporting employment income: 14%
Percent receiving social assistance: 43.1%
Percent reporting no income: 14.6%

Unemployment in Manitoba is at a 30-year low. That means Manitobans are working. In fact, they
are working harder than ever. We are all contributing to a growing economy, and even the poorest
among us are working more. Yet, one in every three low-income children has a parent working
full-time all year, and it is still not enough to pull them out of poverty. A sizzling economy and
plentiful jobs aren’t enough to pull poverty rates down to those enjoyed in many countries with
less robust economies.

In Winnipeg you see child poverty everywhere you go; it could be in a local playground, schools,
streets or community recreation centres. It seems to be endless, and it is a sorrowful situation
when children are standing in line with their families at local food banks.

If you drive down some of our streets you will see numerous people who are homeless or living
on the edge of homelessness. The causes of the problems are complex, but inadequate incomes
must first be addressed for housing to be affordable. Although homelessness may not be only a
housing problem, it is always a housing problem. The gap between the cost of adequate housing
and the income available to pay for it is too large for many individuals and families.

Front line staff working at programs for immigrants and refugees have seen a slight increase in
clientele requesting food assistance. Currently, there are five agencies who partner with Winnipeg
Harvest that are working with refugee families, and we have also noted an increase in the number
of new Canadians calling to register for food assistance, as well as new agencies that work with
this population applying to become food banks.

In Manitoba, there are more rural communities that are requesting food and help for their
families. Food banks have reported that a high number of clients served are people on social
assistance, and that they are seeing new people who have recently moved out of the city. Some
communities have been assisting people just passing through, which is usually more prevalent in
the summer months. One food bank stated that they had to send some clients to a soup kitchen to
receive additional help, and a few would like to be able to offer more services and financial help
to their clientele. However, due to financial difficulties they are unable to do this.
Transportation restrictions are always a problem in rural communities, and many individuals
request that their food hampers be delivered. Volunteers within the food banks deliver to those in
need that are housebound due to illnesses or other physical challenges. However, some food
banks are unable to deliver because of safety concerns and the high cost of gas. One particular
food bank would like to start fundraising just for gas.
HungerCount 2007 • Canadian Association of Food Banks 25

Some communities are seeing a continued decrease in population as individuals and families
leave their communities to find employment, education, and better housing. As populations
shrink, and particularly in the north, access to a range of nutritious foods can be severely limited
in some communities. Some food banks have reported extremely high prices for food products in
isolated areas. For example, when the grocery store burned down in one northern community,
many residents were without access to food for about a week.Provincial and Territorial Perspectives