Province boosts Harvest Manitoba’s in-demand infant-care program

The Manitoba government is contributing $300,000 to Harvest Manitoba’s First Steps program, which provides mothers with children under two years old with formula, baby food and diapers.

Demand for the program’s support packages has doubled over the past five years, Vince Barletta, the food bank’s chief executive, said Thursday.

Now, roughly 2,000 children are on the receiving end of the non-profit’s packages, which include items that have risen in price, such as baby formula, he said.

Barletta pointed to a combination of factors that have increased demand, including the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation and an influx of Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war in their country.

“And now we’re into economic turmoil again — high gas prices and tariffs and other challenges,” he said.

The $300,000 will cover approximately half of the program’s annual cost, Barletta said. Harvest Manitoba ships its packages to 130 agencies across the province.

In the past, donors paid for the entire program. Since the need has grown, the government funding will keep First Steps sustainable, he said.

Families receive packages monthly. Before the pandemic, recipients got service every two weeks, noted Melissa Moar. The 29-year-old mother said a return to that frequency would be helpful, adding she appreciates the program, no matter the schedule.

“Especially with the inflation right now — it’s just getting a little out of hand,” Moar said. “It just makes people scramble for resources like this.”

Harvest Manitoba has no immediate plans to return to a biweekly service, but it could happen if the non-profit expands its warehouse, Barletta said. Staff are currently looking at moving to a larger Winnipeg location.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com