Toronto Metropolitan University's Independent Student Newspaper Since 1967

All News

FOOD ROOM FEEDS ANYONE

By David Musayelyan

Roughly half the food in Ryerson’s Community Food Room goes to people outside the school, despite the fact that the room is staffed throuh RyeSAC and by student volunteers.

Derek Isber, RyeSAC’s vice president finance and services, said that he would “encourage “mainly students to use it. “In the past, it used to be accessible only to members of Ryerson,” he said.

But vice president education Rebecca Rose doesn’t see what the big deal is. “It’s a community food room. Co-mmu-nity,” she said, noting that the Daily Bread Food Bank-a warehouse that sponsors different food banks all around the GTA-mandates that the Community Food Room be open to all.

“It is unfair to deny food to people because they are not Ryerson students,” she said. Rose believes that students have a responsibility to be concerned about the outside world and “change the community for the better.”

The Community Food Room was established in partnership with Daily Bread, which stocks over 60 per cent of the food room’s supply. While Isber may support the food room as a student-only service, he said it would be pointless to have a food room without food. “It is possible [Daily Bread] may cancel our membership,” he said.

James Howe, a spokesperson for Daily Bread, assured that if Ryerson’s food bank closes to people outside the school, Daily Bread would still donate. Howe said that “if Ryerson wants to accept people from outside, we would be happy.”

He added that there are also “other food banks open to specific clientele. As long as there are no difficulties created for [community customers].”

Leave a Reply