Food insecurity

Good morning! 

I’ve been spending a lot of time out in Kits lately. I will admit my bias – it’s just a tad too far for me. I get the appeal, the quietness, and proximity to the beach. The walkability, at least where I’m spending time, is excellent. But the extra bit of bus time is a bit too much.

I’m sure many of you are reading this and shaking your head. But one of the best things about Vancouver is the variety of places to live, depending on your needs (though of course, the one constant in all of that is the big cost!). 

Sadly one of the worst things, and a challenge across Canada, is the cost of food. In today’s story, freelancer Julie Chadwick highlights a few groups fighting back against food insecurity in Vancouver.

— Geoff Sharpe, Lookout founder and managing editor

PS - If you find this newsletter valuable, please consider forwarding it to your friends. New to the Lookout? Sign-up for free. 

WEATHER

Monday: 11 🌡️ 7 | 🌧️

Tuesday: 8 🌡️ 6 | 🌧️

Wednesday: 8 🌡️ 7 | 🌧️

FOOD

With food insecurity on the rise, Vancouver food groups innovate to fill the gap

By Julie Chadwick.

More than 24 per cent of British Columbians are currently experiencing food insecurity, according to Food Bank B.C.’s latest Hunger Report released Dec. 1. With food costs 27 per cent higher than they were five years ago, the average family of four in Canada is expected to spend $994.63 more on food next year, according to Dalhousie University’s latest food price report.

And in Metro Vancouver, the latest Living Wage Report found that 36 per cent of employees made less than the living wage and face ongoing financial hardship. 

Local organizations and non-profits in the city say they are scrambling to keep up with the community’s most immediate needs, while trying to also address the root causes of food insecurity. 

“Our political machinery is still in the charity model, they're still reliant on the charity sector to solve hunger, and it's not working,” says Ian Marcuse, a community food organizer with the Vancouver Food Justice Coalition. “There is a strong movement, a growing movement, towards a recognition that governments have a legal responsibility to uphold the right to food, and that includes a right to food that is dignified and free of charity.”

What that looks like on a community level can be seen in Marcuse’s work with Vancouver Neighbourhood Food Networks, a collective of 19 community food organizations that tackle the issue of food insecurity on a neighbourhood level. One example is the bulk buying program run out of the Britannia Community Services Centre in the Grandview Woodland neighbourhood where he lives.

Community members pay $15 a month to bulk buy produce like carrots and potatoes at a significantly lower cost than retail, and at a fresher quality because it’s direct wholesale that bypasses the grocery store shelves.

“For us it’s really about people coming together, pooling their resources and getting quality food,” says Cynthia Low, Britannia’s executive director. This model is also more empowering, she says, as it’s run by a team of volunteers with a variety of abilities and vulnerabilities, and keeping food distribution local makes it more physically accessible.

Given the level of need in Vancouver, the neighbourhood food networks are focused on basic food provision via food markets, bulk buying groups and community meals. But they are also working to build what Marcuse describes as “resilient food systems for all, through community development approaches.”

Those approaches include long-term investments into community gardens, community kitchens and skill-building workshops like canning and food preservation.

In October, local youth in Britannia’s Off the Grill program made Italian sausages, caprese skewers and kale caesar salad for more than 45 local community members. Along the way they learned how to shop, prepare, cook, and serve a meal while earning their Food Safe Certificates and learning about how to clean up properly and handle food safely.

Recently gifted 60 salmon from the Lake Babine Nation, the centre plans to run a canning workshop in February, an initiative similar to its urban fish smoking camp that ran for years in partnership with local schools. The neighbourhood is home to Vancouver’s highest population of Indigenous residents, and access to culturally important foods and skills in the area can be limited, says Low.

Keeping these types of initiatives afloat is an ongoing struggle, however, as budgets are strained and public funding is limited. 

On one end of the food security continuum are food banks and provision of emergency food, Marcuse explains. It then moves through a spectrum of urban agriculture, education and strong renewable food systems. On the other end is advocacy, policy work and systemic change, which is why the Vancouver Food Justice Coalition started, he says.

“It came together two years ago, looking at this poly-crisis we're facing — food inflation in particular, climate change issues, the pandemic, all of these issues which are creating increased inequality and rising food insecurity,” he says. “We looked at budgets as well, and realizing that oh my gosh, looking at this Vancouver budget in particular, there was so little money dedicated to food systems. And so we realized, it is time now to get more political.”

Many of these small neighbourhood organizations trying to tackle the root causes of hunger on a more systemic level are “barely hanging in there,” adds Marcuse.

Vancouver City Councillor Sean Orr says it’s remarkable what these organizations are accomplishing with “very little funding from federal, provincial or municipal” sources. 

“Five per cent, in fact, of the funding comes from government sources, which in my opinion is not enough, and we had a budget recently that pretty much froze all spending on that kind of thing. And their funding had already basically been frozen,” he told Vancity Lookout. “It’s just less than a million, but it's been less than a million for the last 10 years. So their funding has stayed the exact same [while] their costs have gone up.”

Despite the low level of funding, grassroots organizations still manage to eke out innovative ways to respond to local food insecurity.

On Dec. 2, a new charitable network launched called the Vancouver Food Recovery Network, which recovers and redistributes an estimated 400,000 pounds of surplus rescued food a month from places like hotels, grocery stores, wholesalers and caterers that would otherwise go to landfills.

Its four existing organizations — CityReach Care Society, Food Stash Foundation, Vancouver Food Runners, and Quest non-profit grocery markets — each tackle a different area of need.  

CityReach and Food Stash support people and families directly, and give to existing community organizations like women’s shelters and schools, whereas Food Runners operate something like a taxi service to pick up and deliver food directly to community service agencies. Quest runs a low-cost non-profit market from donated items where people can shop. 

“We wanted to make the public aware, donors aware, that there is this other approach to food accessibility, lowering food waste while feeding more people who are in need — in addition to the traditional food bank,” says Cheryl McManus, associate executive director of CityReach Care Society, one of four organizations in the network that serves more than 60,000 residents per week.

“We recognize this is a temporary solution. This is not the ideal. The ideal is that grocery prices come down, that suppliers, grocers, and farms are not producing such an excess surplus and poverty is reduced. It’s a whole network of things. That’s part of our work is advocacy, so challenging local, provincial and even federal governments to rethink the systems,” says McManus. 

“In the ideal, we don’t exist at all. The ideal is that people don’t need to rely on a food bank or on donated food, but there’s such a need right now and there’s so much food going to waste that we needed to do something about it.”

THE VANCOUVER NUMBER

130

You’ll have one less reason to wear your fascinator this summer, as Hastings Racecourse will be shutting down permanently after 130 years in operation. All thoroughbred racing will end immediately. The company says it’s due to business issues but also coincides with the announcement that the provincial government was cutting slot machine revenues. The Vancouver Humane Society applauded the move due to animal welfare concerns. Read more. [CityNews]

THE AGENDA

⚽️ While the Whitecaps didn’t hoist this year’s MLS Cup, losing to Inter Miami 3-1, our home team should be proud of their results. Unfortunately, the victory comes amid uncertainty over the team’s future — the head coach said he wants the club to remain in Vancouver, but the club is in negotiations with the city about finding a new team stadium. It should be said that this is a common negotiating tactic by sports teams. Read more. [CBC]

🏟️ This is certainly a soccer-heavy addition today, as FIFA announced on Saturday the games that will be played in Canada during the World Cup. Vancouver will host teams like Australia, New Zealand and a few other smaller countries. Read more. [CityNews]

🔧 Another victim of the city’s budget cuts? Repair cafés. The future of the city’s household repair programs is now in doubt after the city cut its funding as part of its budget cuts to achieve a zero per cent property tax increase. Read more. [CBC]

👎️ A city staff recommendation to shut down 10 of 11 city advisory boards is being met with criticism from past members and some city councillors who say it could lead to the silencing of different voices. Staff says that due to the upcoming election, the groups will have limited capacity to advance their goals. ABC councillors have not made a decision on whether to vote for the plan. Read more. [Vancouver Sun]

👮 The Wall Centre hitman, who 14 years ago killed a gangster in broad daylight in the Sheraton Wall Centre, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Read more. [Vancouver Sun]

🏒 While the Whitecaps weren’t successful, the Goldeneyes snagged a win to break a three-game losing streak with a 4-0 win against the New York Sirens on Saturday. Read more. [CBC]

🏒 The Canucks unloaded on the Minnesota Wild, winning 4-2 after three goals in the second period. The team is now 11-15-3 and sits in last place in the Pacific Division. 

🏒 And finally, the Vancouver Giants lost 8-2 against the Everett Silvertips on Sunday, and hold a record of 12-15-1-1. 

EVENT GUIDE

“You Got Gold” – A Celebration of John Prine | VIFF, 777 Homer St. | Multiple Dec. dates | Film tribute to John Prine featuring performances by admired artists celebrating his life and music | Tickets $16+

Eastside Flea Holiday Markets | 1739 Venables St., Vancouver | Until Dec. 14, various times | Indoor–outdoor market with local makers, vintage finds, food trucks and festive seasonal drinks | $5

Wesbrook Village Holiday Market | Norman Mackenzie Square, 3378 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver | Until Dec. 21, Fri 3–9 pm; Sat–Sun 12–7 pm | Outdoor UBC village market with seasonal treats, artisan vendors and cozy holiday atmosphere | Free

Make It! The Handmade Revolution | 2901 E Hastings St., Vancouver | Until 14, various times | Large handmade market featuring art, jewelry, treats, kids zone and festive entertainment | Tickets $15

Strathcona Holiday Market | 873 & 868 East Hastings | Dec. 13–14, 11 am–4 pm | Two-day East Vancouver market showcasing local artisans, vintage goods and handmade items for holiday gifting | Free

Holiday Shop at The Polygon Gallery | The Polygon Gallery, 101 Carrie Cates Ct. | Until Jan. 4, 10 am–5 pm; Thu until 9 pm | Seasonal gallery shop featuring unique artist-made gifts and weekly interactive activities for visitors | Free

Little Women – Arts Club Theatre Company | Granville Island Stage, 1585 Johnston St. | Now–Jan. 4, various times | Fresh, inventive stage adaptation of Alcott’s classic following the March sisters’ coming-of-age journey | Tickets from $29

INSIDER

Vancouver's new non-profit housing initiative could reshape the city's neighbourhoods

Vancouver is poised to transform its approach to regulating non-profit housing. The city’s Social Housing Initiative (SHI) would prezone select neighbourhoods all across Vancouver, outside of downtown, for non-profit housing. This could provide a boost for the financial viability of non-profit projects, while fundamentally altering where in the city these projects can be built. 

The idea behind prezoning is to shrink development timelines – it takes about a year off the permitting process according to the city – and save money, which can be particularly helpful to non-profits running projects on tight margins. It’s an approach the city has been favouring of late. Council recently approved a city-led rezoning of nearly 4,300 properties in the Broadway and Cambie Corridor plan areas.

“Definitionally with non-profit housing, there isn't a profit so everything [financially] is constantly on a knife edge,” Brendan Dawe, a real estate consultant and member of Abundant Housing Vancouver, told Vancity Lookout. 

Read the story

NEW VANCOUVER JOBS

Discover your new dream job in Vancouver:

• Director of policy and strategic initiatives at Law Society of British Columbia

• Provincial engagement officer at Ronald McDonald House

• Manager, strategy and operations at Colliers

• Senior advisor, intergovernmental relations at Housing BC

• Social media marketing manager at 711

GOOD NEWS MONDAY

There’s a new dog stick library over near Commercial Drive, at the corner of Cotton and Charles near Grandview park. These types of little things may seem small, but they’re a part of the fabric of a community. Now let’s get more actual libraries built!

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• Congrats to Vancouver chef Alex Kim, who placed second at Top Chef Canada. [Straight]

• Now that’s a lot of kilometres to run for a good cause. [CityNews]

• Here’s why Metro Vancouver lawns may be looking a little worse than normal. [Vancouver Sun]

• The famous Penthouse signs have gotten their own book. [CityNews]

• A new winter Vancouver sign has been installed at the north plaza at the Vancouver Art Gallery. [Urbanized]

• Want to have your announcement featured? Learn how here.

VANCOUVER NEWS QUIZ

PHOTO OF THE DAY

A little rainy photo from the West End.