Working P.E.I. poor heavy food bank users

The number of working Islanders turning to food banks is more than double the national average, according to a new report from Food Banks Canada.

The 2014 HungerCount report was released last week.

Across the country 17 per cent of people going to a food bank are either currently employed or recently employed. In P.E.I. it's 37 per cent. It's more than double the national average, said Food Banks Canada executive director Katharine Schmidt.

That would be the one area that we're really seeing a difference in P.E.I. versus across Canada.

Schmidt blames low wages, lack of full-time jobs and the high amount of seasonal work on P.E.I. for the disparity. She suggested governments could help by investing in more affordable housing.

Seventy per cent of the Islanders who turn to P.E.I. food banks are renting unsubsidized housing. She said that number is on par with other parts of Canada.

For mobile device users: Why are so many working Islanders using food banks?