Send Doug Ford’s $200 rebate cheque to a food bank: Mississauga mayor

That $200 rebate cheque you’ll be getting from Doug Ford? Give it to a food bank.

That is the message from Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish who said the dramatic increase in those going without food calls for drastic fundraising measures from all segments of society and senior levels of government.

“Premier Ford is sending out $200 cheques. I’ve already informed my kids and grandkids that they are endorsing the back of those cheques and they are sending them to Mississauga Food Bank,” Parrish said. “Lots of people need those $200 cheques and they will be happy to receive them, they will be able to do some grocery shopping. But the rest of us who don’t need them should be giving them to our foodbank.”

But that is just the start, according to the mayor.

She said it is time for both the provincial and federal governments to start kicking in funds and supports so that food banks in Mississauga and across Peel can meet the demand to feed those who are hungry.

The city is also calling for increases in social assistance programs, more affordable housing, and better worker support programs.

Mississauga has already declared a “food crisis” pointing to the empty shelves at food banks in the city that can’t be restocked fast enough forcing many clients to make hard choices between eating or paying the rent.

“Never before have I seen the level of food insecurity and food bank usage that we are experiencing now,” said Food Banks Mississauga CEO Meghan Nicholls at a news conference today (Nov. 13) called to draw attention to the cause and, hopefully, lead to more donations of funds and food.

Nicholls said Mississauga has seen the largest escalation of food bank visits in all of Ontario pointing out that more than 56,000 people in the city used a food bank last year. “And that number is increasing,” Nicholls said adding that one out of every 13 residents in Mississauga now use a food bank.

Nicholls said the reliance on food banks in Mississauga has increased 78 per cent in the last year but that fundraising has only increased by 2 per cent. She said government donations are minimal with public funds only coming from the Region of Peel which supplies just 1 per cent of the total resources required.

“The lack of provincial and federal funding for food banks and people facing food insecurity means that we face an uphill battle as our neighbours fall further and further behind,” Nicholls said.

Members of the public and businesses are also encouraged to make donations that can be sent to www.foodbanksmississauga.ca/holiday