Food bank visits in the GTA are up 51% from last year, Daily Bread says

As Daily Bread Food Bank launches its annual Thanksgiving food drive, the charity is looking for more than just donations to meet record demand – it wants Torontonians to pressure governments to offer relief.

Speaking to reporters at the food drive launch Thursday morning, Daily Bread's vice president of research and advocacy Talia Bronstein said food banks are doing all they can for an ever-growing client list, but they need help.

The federal government spent over $200 million throughout the pandemic on an Emergency Food Security Fund, which was distributed regionally to food aid agencies.

That support has since stopped — and Bronstein says the Daily Bread's food costs are now 12 times higher than they were pre-pandemc.

Food bank visits have also gone up 51 per cent compared to this time last year, she said, a fact she attributes to the rising cost of living. 

Last month, she says there were 274,521 food bank visits across the GTA. It costs the charity nearly $2 million a month, or $22 million annually, to run its services, Bronstein said.

"Toronto's food insecurity crisis continues with no signs of slowing down," she said. "No one should have to rely on charity for food yet here we are, with 12,500 new individuals walking through the doors of Toronto food banks for the first time every single month."

Due to growing need, Bronstein says Daily Bread is hoping to raise $3.8 million and collect over 90,718 kilograms in food donations by the end of October.

"We are calling on the public to get involved in any way you can," she said.

"You can support by donating food or funds or volunteering your time. But most importantly, we need you to raise your voice. We need you to contact your elected representatives at all levels of government and demand urgent action to address Toronto's food insecurity crisis."

NDP MPP Bhutila Karpoche, who also attended the launch, says the Ontario government needs to step up.

"The lack of action to address grocery-price gouging, the ever-skyrocketing rents and the overall cost of housing is putting immense pressure on individuals and families across the province," Karpoche said.

A spokesperson for Ontario's Ministry of of Children, Community and Social Services says the department is working to bring relief to people struggling with a cost of living that's been steadily rising.

"Our government is improving the way that social assistance is delivered in the province so that people have a faster pathway to get the support they need," the spokesperson said in an emailed statement.