Food Bank of Waterloo Region weighs in on record-breaking food bank visits in province

New numbers show more people are relying on food banks as a result of the cost-of-living crisis.

“The data we are about to share reveals food bank use has reached an all-time high in Ontario,” Feed Ontario CEO Carolyn Stewart told food bank representatives Tuesday morning in Mississauga.

Based on data from Feed Ontario, a network of hunger-relief organizations, more than one million people visited a food bank between April 1, 2023 and March 31, 2024. That’s a 25 per cent increase over last year.

“That’s one million people in Ontario not having enough food to eat, one million people having to make impossible choices between paying rent or choosing groceries for their family. And one million people unable to keep their heads above water and in need of help,” Stewart said.

The data also shows 7.6 million visits to Ontario food banks within the past year, up 17 per cent from the year before. It also marks a 134 per cent jump from 2019-2020.

“We are tired of breaking records, and we are tired of feeling like those in government who should be responding with a sense of urgency aren't hearing the alarm bells that we're ringing,” Kirstin Beardsley, Food Banks Canada CEO, said at Tuesday’s press conference.

Impact in Waterloo Region

Those same alarm bells are going off at the Food Bank of Waterloo Region. CEO Kim Wilhelm was also at the press conference, echoing the concerns from other organizations.

“In Waterloo Region right now, one in 10 households is accessing food assistance,” she said. “Last year, it was one in 14 and two years ago, one in 20 households.”

While many have wondered if the influx of international students is driving up the numbers, local data shows that’s not the case.

“Students as a whole in Waterloo Region make up less than five per cent of the participants who are accessing food assistance,” Wilhelm explained.

Food banks across the province, meanwhile, are worried that if the cost of living doesn’t go down, the number of people accessing their services will only go up.

“We’re not going to see the end in sight,” said Wilhelm. “Right now, the government is expecting food banks to solve the problem, but food banks can't solve the problems.”

They are a temporary measure, she adds, because that’s all they were ever designed to be.

- With reporting from CTVNewsToronto.ca