Nearly half of Saskatchewan families in new poll said it's difficult to buy enough groceries

Nearly half of Saskatchewan families in new poll said it’s difficult to buy enough groceries

Posted by Admin December 20, 2024 World

Rashad Haque has seen the number of people in need of a meal grow over the years.

“You know, there’s a lot of families who are struggling just to buy groceries,” said Haque, who has volunteered at the Muslim Food Bank in Regina for many years.

“We try to help supplement, give them a little extra so they can get by for the month.”

Half the families in Saskatchewan who responded to a new Angus Reid poll said they are worried about putting food on the table.

The Angus Reid poll surveyed 349 people from Saskatchewan online over about a week starting at the end of November. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.5 per cent.

Two in five respondents to the poll rated paying their rent or mortgage as tough or very difficult.

The Muslim Food Bank delivers lunches every Saturday morning.

“The hardest part of volunteering is when we run out of food and there’s still people who need it,” Haque said. “Unfortunately we have to turn people away because we have nothing left.”

Hem Juttla, a director with the Guru Nanak Free Kitchen in Regina, says last weekend they served more than 2,500 people.

Hem Juttla, a director with the Guru Nanak Free Kitchen in Regina, says it served more than 2,500 people last weekend. (CBC News)

Hem Juttla, a director with the Guru Nanak Free Kitchen in Regina, said it served more than 2,500 people last weekend.

“We have served food in -50 C, we have served food in plus 30 C. You should see the people that come there. There’s a real need,” Juttla said.

The two organizations were at a news conference set up by the NDP to highlight the high cost of living and the growing homeless population in the province.

Saskatoon NDP MLA April ChiefCalf said Saskatchewan’s rising cost of living is contributing to increased homelessness.

ChiefCalf cited the latest point-in-time count, which saw Saskatoon’s unhoused population almost triple in two years to nearly 1,500 people, while Regina’s homeless nearly doubled since 2021.

“Rents are rising faster than wages, and there’s also no reason for a Sask. Party government to sit on 3,000 empty provincial housing units, foregoing rent and utilities,” ChiefCalf said. “We need action to get these units back online.”