City In Need: Check Out This Kawartha Food Share Fact Sheet
/Kawartha Food Share distributes food to 37 local agencies that run food banks, food cupboards and meal programs. Here's some stats from 2013 they provided to us—many alarming—about the number of people in need in the community:
• 48 schools access Kawartha Food Share to help with their breakfast clubs and meal programs. In the month of March 2013, more than 158,000 meals were served in Peterborough area schools. 17,000 children are fed daily.
• In 2013, Kawartha Food Share distributed over $10 million dollars worth of food.
• Currently, 7,728 people are using food banks every month in the City and County of Peterborough—a number which increases to 11,244 when reflecting multiple visits.
• Food bank use has increased by 35% over the past 5 years.
• 41% of local food bank users are under the age of 18.
• In the month of March alone, 300 people visited a food bank for the very first time.
• 24% of food bank users are a mix of post-secondary students, pensioners and the working poor, many of which are only able to find part-time work in this community.
• Kawartha Food Share’s volunteers work the equivalent number of hours as 10 full-time paid staff positions.
Tip us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and Like us on Facebook.