LOOKING AHEAD 2024: York Region food banks grapple with ‘alarming’ growth in demand

Systemic causes of food insecurity need to be addressed, including rising food and rent costs, lack of affordable housing, insufficient social assistance programs and income inequality

Yorkregion.com
Jan. 5, 2024
Simone Joseph

The Food Bank of York Region is calling on the provincial government to step up supports to address food insecurity in the region.

“The demand for food assistance in York region continues to rise at an alarming rate,” said Alex Bilotta, FBYR’s founder and CEO.

Food banks across the region were overwhelmed by the surge in demand in 2023 and have become increasingly relied upon to subsidize government policy changes, budget cuts and inadequacies in social support programs, according to Bilotta.

In 2022, the Food Bank of York Region’s network of 88 non-profit food providers served more than 30,000 people. This number represents an increase of 25 per cent from 2021, Bilotta said.

As of November of last year, the Food Bank has distributed over $8 million worth of food, representing an increase of 62 per cent from 2022.

“We need more of everything and, in our case, our rent is going to almost double as of June. We need double our current space, but it will cost us four times more at current market prices for industrial space in Vaughan.”

The not-for-profit agency's annual report on food insecurity notes the systemic causes of the increase in food insecurity have yet to be addressed. These include the rising costs of food and rent, the lack of affordable housing, insufficient social assistance programs and income inequality.

The rising cost of rent and food have placed immense pressure on low-income and working poor households, as well as people dependent on social assistance, leaving them vulnerable to severe food insecurity.

To address this crisis, the Food Bank of York Region’s report outlined three main recommendations moving forward.

It calls on government to address Canada’s affordable housing crisis. While many factors cause Canadians to seek food assistance, one of the most pressing is the high cost of shelter. Ninety-six percent of food bank users surveyed in York Region were renters.

The second recommendation highlights the stark difference between income and cost of living. Financial support from Ontario’s social assistance programs has not kept pace with inflation and food and housing price hikes, according to the report. Food insecurity experienced by those who are employed must also be addressed by progressively increasing the minimum wage to a living wage.

It is also calling for support to continue to build and maintain the non-profit food rescue and distribution sector.

Kate Greavette, executive director of York Region Food Network, said a lot of what her network does is tackle the mental health and the social health impacts associated with poverty.

She read recently about “inflation isolation”, defined as the loneliness brought on when people are avoiding the expense of social events. When afflicted with this, people socialize less.

“Often, we find that people don't feel comfortable joining a potluck, for instance, with colleagues because they can't contribute," she said. "They might decline invites with friends ... And all of that creates social isolation”.

And it means that people are becoming more and more disconnected from their social network, she added.

As a result, people will try to make themselves invisible, Greavette said.

"We'll see a lot of people who just want to kind of blend into the background. They don't want to be noticed because they can't participate," Greavette said.

Another concern is the heavy toll facing staff.

“Burnout is really kind of one of the biggest worries," Greavette said. "It's just at what point is this going to become too much because some people are under a lot of stress. You see really hard stories and a lot of people are struggling and that definitely does take a toll on staff and volunteers who are providing that support."

York Region Food Network is piloting an affordable fresh food market so people have access to fresh fruit and vegetables. The network is, for the most part, buying produce at wholesale prices from local farmers. Some of it is being donated, as well. The market runs in four different communities throughout York.

As of last year, the pilot was three months in to its six-month target.

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