FOG BLOG MARITIME LOG: DARTMOUTH COMMUNITY FRIDGE HELPS OUT PEOPLE IN NEED SINCE MAY!

Dartmouth community fridge project reports huge demand since May launch Organizers say hundreds of pounds of donated food have been picked up since it started One month after launching a project to provide food for people struggling with the cost of living in Dartmouth, N.S., volunteers are reporting a big need for the service.

With food prices up nearly 10 per cent in the past year, in addition to rising costs for almost everything else, many people are turning to the community fridge for extra help.

"We have young people, senior citizens, families with children, unhoused, underemployed. You name it, people have been accessing the fridge," said Lisa Scott, one of the project volunteers.

The community fridge was set up on the grounds of Christ Church close to the downtown in May.

It is stocked with donated eggs, milk, fruit and vegetables. The fridge is enclosed in a shelter that includes a pantry. It has staples like canned goods, pasta and cereals, as well as things like peanut butter, jam and even hygiene products.

Scott said volunteers have been surprised the community fridge has been so busy.

"The need has been demonstrated by the fridge being emptied and filled several times a day in some cases," she said, adding that hundreds of pounds of food have been picked up every week in the past month.

Volunteers report people dropping by as often as every 10 minutes at certain times of the day, either to pick up or donate food. Some of those using the service would not normally access traditional food banks, Scott said.

"Most people using this fridge are having to use the financial resources they have to meet other needs and the first thing to go is maybe choosing nutritious food," she said.

The project does not require any sign up and is open to everyone as a way to remove any stigma that may come with registering for food programs.