Dal’s Food Security Project returns on Giving Tuesday to boost student food security

Second-year PhD student Alexe Indigo confronts the issue of food security every day. Indigo is the manager of the Agricultural Campus’s Food Pantry, which provides students with access to a variety of nutritious food items including fresh produce, dairy and eggs, and shelf-stable food.

Indigo says that in recent years, resources like the Food Pantry and the Dalhousie Student Union (DSU) Food Bank in Halifax are essential in supporting the campus community.

Rising food costs contributing to increased demand

According to Statistics Canada, the overall price of food in Nova Scotia in September increased by 4.1 per cent over the same month last year. Indigo has been with the Food Pantry since 2022 and says the number of students using the service every month has quadrupled.

“The need has grown exponentially,” says Indigo. “Times are tough, and we’ve seen that reflected in the number of students using the Food Pantry.”

DSU President Maren Mealy says the DSU Foodbank, which serves students at Dal’s Halifax campuses and the University of King’s College, has also seen significant increases in the number of student visits. Last year, Mealy says the DSU Food Bank had more than 6,700 student visits, and the demand is expected to increase.