THUNDER BAY — More than 800,000 people used a food bank in Ontario between April 1, 2022 and March 31, 2023.
Feed Ontario made Thunder Bay one of their stops Friday to discuss their annual Hunger Count Report, which gathers data from food banks across the country.
The organization is back in the city for the first time in a decade because, as Feed Ontario CEO Carolyn Stewart said, to ensure local voices are heard in Northwestern Ontario.
“The [Regional Food Distribution Association] is such an incredible partner here in [the region, and I think] the fact that they serve a geographic area [that’s equivalent to the size of] France sometimes [doesn’t register with some individuals]. So, we thought it was important to come [to Thunder Bay] to highlight [not only] their work, but [also recognize] the voices of those in the North,” Stewart said.
The report noted that there was a 38 per cent increase in unique individuals to food banks over the last year, which marks the highest single year increase ever reported.
Other findings show that over 5.8 million visits to food banks were made last year, an increase of 36 per cent over the previous year and 101 per cent over pre-pandemic numbers.
Stewart highlighted that food bank usage has been steadily increasing for the last seven years due to the progressive growth of precarious work, an erosion of social support programs, and a failure to invest in affordable and supportive housing as the longstanding drivers.
Ontario received a D- in the inaugural poverty report from Food Banks Canada released in September.
That organization also reported that more than 42 per cent of the population feels financially worse off as compared to last year.
Stewart has been meeting with several political stakeholders and was asked if they seem receptive to what the organization is telling them.
“We always used to say we feel hopeful — I think with the numbers, it's hard to feel as hopeful as we once did. That said I think there's opportunity for change,” Stewart said. “We have seen public policy make a difference; For example, the Child Tax Benefit, which was introduced federal, I think has drastically reduced child poverty.
"We are encouraging the public to get engaged in the food security discussion because it affects all communities.”
Both Thunder Bay area MPPs were in attendance to deliver remarks at the event, which also included a $50,000 donation from Ontario Power Generation to the Regional Food Distribution Association.
RFDA executive director Volker Kromm admits he was caught off-guard by the move.
"This one is special for me because it allows us to [help] those communities that we normally serve, including the remote ones. We can say yes to emergency supplies, and we do get those requests," he said. By partnering with corporations, we can do that.”
