Some new numbers on food bank usage from the agency Feed Ontario.
It says more than one million people made 7.6 million visits to a food bank almost 8 million visits to an Ontario food bank between April 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024.
This represents a 25% in the number of people using food banks and a 31% spike in visits over the previous year.
Feed Ontario’s Chief Executive Officer, Carolyn Stewart calls it disheartening.
“I’ve been with the organization for almost 15 years, and I find the release of these news numbers sobering. I never thought we would reach a number so high in this province and in my lifetime,” says Stewart.
Stewart says the high demand for food banks is being driven by several factors.
She says the high cost of living with incomes that have not kept pace has left many outside of what would be considered a livable wage.
The organization also points to government policies that have impacted the province’s most vulnerable.
“Both for OW (Ontario Works) and ODSP (Ontario Disability Support Program), the rates are far below the poverty line and aren’t meeting the goals they intended. So I think that compounded by the reality that we’ve seen through the pandemic and with the inflation over the last few years, has just caused this extreme surge in demand for food bank services.”
The concern now is for the future of some of the province’s food banks.
Feed Ontario finds that 69% of food banks are worried about not having enough food to adequately provide support to those in need, while 53% wonder about having enough funding to meet the rising demand.
Stewart says it is just not sustainable at the current trend.
“Food banks are worried they’re going to have to pull back on service. So, provide less, maybe not provide to as many people as they would like, or worse of all, close their doors. And that we do not want to get to that point.”
Feed Ontario continues to lobby the government for a robust poverty reduction strategy, and is asking Ontarians to get involved by speaking to their elected representatives.
“Reach out to your local representative. They should know that food insecurity and poverty are key issues that you want to see addressed. I think we all know that there are both provincial and federal elections on the horizon in the next twelve months.”
Stewart also encourages residents to visit a local food bank to learn about the work they are doing in their community.
