Ottawa-Vanier has highest per capita food bank usage in Ontario: study

A new study by Feed Ontario (formerly the Ontario Association of Food Banks) shows the per capita food bank usage in the ridings of Ottawa-Vanier, Ottawa-South and Ottawa-West Nepean are among some of the highest in the province.

The study examined food bank use data between January 1 and December 31, 2018. It showed Ontario's food banks were accessed by 507,977 people who visited 3,033,970 times throughout the year — a three percent increase over 2017.

Ottawa-Vanier ranked highest in the study with 15 of every 100 constituents using the local food bank. More than 16,500 residents in that Ontario riding visited the food bank in 2018.

The ridings with the next highest per capita food bank usage were Hamilton Centre and Thunder Bay-Atikokan, with 12 and 11 of every 100 people using their food banks, respectively.

Ottawa-South was showed the fifth highest numbers in the study, with 9 in 100 people visiting the food bank. In Ottawa-West Nepean, 8 of every 100 residents visit the food bank, which according to the study, ranks nineth highest in per capita use in the province.

The Ottawa Food Bank serves over 57,600 individuals per year across six ridings. 

“It is deeply concerning that the provincial riding with the highest per capita food bank usage in Ontario is located in a city as wealthy as Ottawa,”said Michael Maidment, CEO of the Ottawa Food Bank. “This report underscores the urgent need for concrete, long-term solutions that have a measurable impact on the root causes of poverty.”

The Feed Ontario study was completed in partnership with the Fleming College Geographic Information Systems (GIS) program and presents the findings on an interactive map that allows users to compare provincial electoral ridings across the province, including information on food bank use, mean and median income, and housing. The intention of the project is to help inform visitors to the website that hunger and poverty touch every corner of the province.

“In Ontario, someone visits a food bank every 10 seconds,” said Amanda King, Interim Executive Director at Feed Ontario. “And while food banks are doing their best to assist those in need in their communities, this is a growing problem – and one that needs to be addressed by long-term solutions to poverty.”

Feed Ontario is calling on the provincial government to implement policies that address the root causes of hunger. 

With the majority of food bank visitors being Ontario Works (OW) or Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) recipients, these recommendations including reducing clawbacks for those trying to re-enter the workforce, and ensuring that the definition of “disability” for ODSP recipients remains inclusive of episodic illnesses. Additionally, Feed Ontario recommends continued investments in affordable housing and improvements to the economic opportunities available to Ontarians.

“Food banks across the province provide emergency food support to more than half a million people each year,” said King. “It is our hope that this map will help inform policy makers and our elected officials about a growing problem that exists in every riding in Ontario, and that they will work to find long-term solutions that address hunger and poverty in the communities that they serve.”

To access Feed Ontario's interactive map, click here.

For further information on Feed Ontario and its research, click here.