NSCAD students are hungry
NSCAD students clear out their food bank faster than other students in the HRM
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The student union of NSCAD, known to students as SUNSCAD, advertises its food bank. (Photo: Megan Lyons)
Hungry students at NSCAD have already emptied out their food bank only one day after Feed Nova Scotia - a provincial organization that collects and distributes food to those in need - made their weekly donation of food to the art university.
Robyn Touchie, president of the NSCAD student union, says almost all of the food disappears within one hour of opening the food bank on Mondays.
"There are some random things left in there, but for the most part, all the stuff is cleared," Touchie said in an interview.
Potatoes, carrots and onions are mostly what is left.
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One of the three fridges at the NSCAD food bank with only carrots left after Monday's donation. (Photo: Megan Lyons)
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University Food Banks in the HRM
Audio
Listen to Heather Ross' CKDU radio broadcast that aired Nov.14 2011 (1.55 MB clip)
Kyle Martins, a first year student at NSCAD, says he goes to the food bank every week to save money.
"Groceries are expensive and it helps stretch the money," Martins says.
According to the HungerCount study - an annual report that details food bank use within Canada - 30 thousand Canadian students are going to food banks each month. They make up four per cent of the population using food banks.
University students living in Halifax use them twice as often. According to Feed Nova Scotia, eight per cent of Haligonians that turn to food banks are students.
Other Campuses
Dalhousie University, Mount Saint Vincent University and Saint Mary's University all have food banks on campus. For Dal and MSVU, the food banks are student run. The food is also donated by Feed Nova Scotia.
Food donated to MSVU and Dal doesn't go as fast as NSCAD. Meagan Chaffey, the coordinator of the student resource centre at MSVU, says they get a food delivery from Feed Nova Scotia every second week. She says it doesn't go very fast, but it depends on the time of year.
"When money is tight for students, usually before student loans are in or near Christmas, a lot of students show up," Chaffey says.
Kayla Kurin, vice president of Dalhousie student union, says Feed Nova Scotia donates to Dal's food bank every Thursday. "It doesn't go that quickly," she says.
"We have measures in place to make sure it can be spread around." Students are only allowed take a couple bags of food rather than a whole box.
New Approach
The food bank system at SMU is different. Instead of a food bank that supplies food, there is a grocery card system. Cards are supplied to students in need.
Catherine Sanders, the campus ministry intern at SMU for the Catholic Church, says SMU runs a non-traditional food bank because the food was disappearing at a "high rate."
Instead of students collecting food, they are given $25 dollar gift cards to Atlantic Super Store. "Students must go to financial aid before getting a gift card," she says.
One card is given per person, per month.
This story originally aired on the news show, The Radio Room, on CKDU on Nov.14. The news show is produced by journalism students in the radio workshop class at the University of King's College.
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