Reliance on food banks reaches all-time high: Feed Ontario
New data from Feed Ontario finds that more than a million people in Ontario needed food bank services in the last year.
The organization also notes food banks in the province were visited more than 7.5 million times in the course of the year.
Reliance on food banks between April 1, 2023, and March 31, 2024, increased by 25 per cent compared to the previous year.
“To be quite honest, I still find the numbers, shocking and completely sobering," said Carolyn Stewart, Feed Ontario CEO.
"I didn't think we'd ever reach that threshold.”
There has also been a 134 per cent increase since 2019-2020, which Feed Ontario said represents a continuous rise of food bank visits, marking an all-time high and the eighth consecutive year of growth.
The data points to food insecurity as the main driver, a result of a rapid spike in the cost of living.
“We see the bulk of our clients being Ontario Works clients, disability, and seniors on pensions," said Debbie Marson of the North Bay Food Bank.
"It’s people that are working but that are really struggling.”
Debbie Marson of the North Bay Food Bank said most of their clients are Ontario Works clients, disability and seniors on pensions. (Photo from video)
The organization points to policy decisions like the erosion of social support programs and not enough investment in affordable housing as reasons why many Ontarians can’t keep their head above water.
Donations are also drying up, which means food banks are starting to see empty shelves -- and a growing concern that some may have to close their doors.
"They were never built for this," Stewart said.
"We were about to be an emergency measure for an emergency need, not as a long term, social safety net."
The data is no surprise to Marson. She said the North Bay Food Bank has seen an increase in demand, year after year.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
"Between January and August, we’ve put out 3,256 hampers," Marson said.
"That equates to serving over 4,000 adults and 1,700 children."
With the province entering the final year of a five-year poverty reduction strategy, Feed Ontario is calling for a more robust poverty reduction strategy to make sure struggling Ontarians can access a basic standard of living.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bloc won't hold Liberals 'hostage' over seniors' benefits: cabinet minister
Liberal cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault says the Liberals will not be 'held hostage' by the Bloc Quebecois' demand to expand Old Age Security to more seniors.
Police identify Toronto victim of alleged serial killer
Toronto police have identified the woman who was allegedly killed by a suspected serial killer earlier this month.
Missing father, kids spotted in New Zealand wilderness 3 years after disappearance: police
A New Zealand man who disappeared with his three children in 2021 was spotted on a farm along the country's northwest coast, police say.
No jail time for man who fatally stabbed senior in Vancouver
A man who stabbed a senior to death in Vancouver's Biltmore Hotel building in 2020 has been given a conditional sentence for the killing, meaning he will not serve any jail time if he remains on good behaviour in the community.
B.C. billionaire posts third large sign criticizing NDP ahead of the election
British Columbia billionaire Chip Wilson has put up yet another billboard message to voters, his third post outside his multimillion-dollar mansion in NDP Leader David Eby's own riding.
EXCLUSIVE: 'We were privileged to be friends with our sister': Family mourns murdered N.S. woman
More than a month after the murder of Nova Scotia woman Esther Jones, her family continues to grapple with the loss.
Great white shark washes up on B.C. shore
In a rare occurrence, a bona fide great white shark washed up on a B.C. beach Thursday.
Job growth numbers 'good news' in Canada but there are concerns, according to an economist
An economist says the latest job growth numbers in Canada are 'good news,' but he has concerns following Statistic Canada's report.
Hot-air balloon strikes and collapses radio tower in Albuquerque during festival
A hot-air balloon struck and collapsed a radio tower Friday in Albuquerque, New Mexico, during the city's famous festival -- the second time in 20 years that a balloon has come into contact with the tower.