Rise in community fridges in Atlantic Canada sign of government support falling short [Video]

Outdoor fridges and pantries, often painted in bright, inviting colours, are popping up across Atlantic Canada, and the people regularly stocking them say demand is growing.

Community fridges or pantries, typically run by volunteers or community groups, are monitored storage spaces that offer free, fresh and non-perishable food. The model is to make food available at all hours of the day, with fewer barriers than traditional food banks.

As the cost of living, especially food, continues to rise, these projects highlight how neighbours are helping to keep each other from going hungry. But community organizers and experts in food insecurity say community fridges aren’t substitutes for the social safety net that governments are responsible for maintaining.

Christene Nottegar, a volunteer at the Dartmouth Community Fridge — one of the largest such fridges in the Halifax area — said that while her group doesn’t track the use of the food storage space, demand …