Addressing Child Food Insecurity in British Columbia

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Quadra-Hillside: A Family Community Kitchen British Columbia (BC) is a wealthy province that provides a variety of publicly funded services to its residents, however, in 2011-2012 food insecurity affected nearly 1.1 million British Columbians (BC Center for Disease Control, 2014, Statistics Canada, 2015) and 4.9 percent of Canadian children were living in households that were effected by food insecurity. This is significant because, “children experiencing food insecurity have poorer school performance, and having not learned healthy eating habits in childhood, they face additional challenges of healthy living as adults” (Government of Canada, 2015). Therefore, it is essential that local communities look for ways to reduce the food insecurity …show more content…

This is important because statistics show that lone-parent families in Canada have the highest rate of food insecurity (Appendix A) (Statistics Canada, 2015). After conducting a community assessment of the Hillside-Quadra area, it was determined, through personal interviews of residents, that one of the most significant issues affecting the area is food insecurity. “Food insecurity exists within a household when one or more members do not have access to the variety or quantity of food they need due to lack of money” (Statistics Canada, 2015). CK have been implemented by other communities within Victoria and can serve as a public health initiative that benefits the communities they serve (Iacovou et al., …show more content…

Low incomes can contribute to families not being able to meet their nutritional needs — impacting the quality and the quantity of food available for parents and children (First Call, 2015). First call goes on to explain that, often parents will forgo their own nutritional requirements in an effort to ensure their children have enough food. Additionally, researchers in the United Kingdom found that low income, as well as, family dynamics have a profound influence on what a family eats. Therefore, developing strategies that involve the family with meal choice, budgeting, and preparation has many benefits (Mackereth,

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