Record number of Christmas baskets: organizations faced with heartbreaking choices

Organizations have had to double the number of Christmas baskets and refuse certain requests to meet the record number of citizens in need as the holidays approach.

“It’s sad to see. Organizations do what they can, but they must make heartbreaking choices, such as prioritizing families with children,” notes the director of communications for the Food Banks of Quebec, Claudia Castonguay.

This is because, everywhere in Quebec, the needs are glaring (see below).

Last March, nearly three-quarters of organizations reported having a shortage of food, according to the 2024 Hunger Report.

To meet exploding demand, Moisson Montréal will distribute a record number of 42,000 Christmas baskets this year, some 7,000 more than last year and more than double that two years ago.

“We try to adjust, but we are aware that we are not meeting needs 100%,” estimates the general director, Chantal Vézina.

More families to help

“We see people we haven’t seen for a long time, who had taken their heads out of the water after the pandemic but who have just dove back into it,” laments Louise Donaldson, deputy director of the Nutrition and Health Service. of community action, in the Ahuntsic district, in Montreal.

This year, the organization will help 900 families, more than double than last year, by increasing the assistance with a few luxury products, such as Nutella, pancake batter and maple syrup.

The bulk of the distribution will be done this week, without registration, to help as many families as possible.

But some organizations are already forced to say no.

At Sun Youth, all 5,000 Christmas baskets were already reserved on the 1st^is December, a first in the history of the Montreal organization.

“Normally, we still have places in mid-December for people who hoped until the last moment that things would get better or who suddenly lose their job before the holidays,” underlines the communications manager, Ann St-Arnaud.

Needs all year round

Faced with demand which is exploding almost everywhere, the Regroupement Partage has decided to abandon its Magasins-Partage, which provided one-off food aid just before Christmas.

Instead, it relies on urban agriculture to replenish food bank coffers with fresh vegetables throughout the year.

“We decided to concentrate on producing a ton of organic products and to benefit as many people as possible who live in precariousness,” underlines the general director, Audrey Parent.

Growing needs in Quebec

• 2.9 million requests for food aid each month, including nearly a million in Montreal
• 43,000 more children than in 2021
• One in five people have a job as their main source of income
• 72% of organizations ran out of food

Source: 2024 Hunger Report from Quebec Food Banks