‘We are at a breaking point’: Toronto’s Daily Bread Food Bank seeing highest demand ever

Toronto’s largest food bank says food insecurity has hit crisis levels. Shauna Hunt with the shocking statistics and calls for the Province to take immediate action.

One of the country’s largest food banks says Toronto is in the midst of a food insecurity crisis.

The Daily Bread Food Bank saw more visits last month than it ever has before, saying visits have quadrupled since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are at a breaking point and need action now,” says CEO Neil Hetherington in a statement. “This is not something that can be outsourced to charities.”

“It is the government’s duty to ensure that every person in this city, in this country, can realize their right to food.”

Hetherington spoke at a news conference Tuesday morning in Etobicoke, discussing the rising numbers and asking the provincial and federal governments to help address the crisis.


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The food bank saw nearly 270,000 visits in March, which it says is the highest number in its 40-year history. It compares to 65,000 client visits per month pre-pandemic.

Hetherington says Daily Bread used to spend $1.5 million a year on food, they are now spending $1.8 million per month.

“That’s not sustainable,” he says.

The organization says it is also seeing 12,000 new people access emergency food services per month, which is six times higher than pre-COVID.

It attributes the rise in clients to stagnating income that hasn’t kept pace with inflation and the rising cost of housing.

“The proportion of food bank clients with employment as their primary source of income has doubled in the last year, from 16 per cent to 33 per cent,” reads a release.

The charity says they are seeing an increase in clients who have full-time jobs and are still seeking food assistance. The average food bank client has around $8 per day left for food and other necessities, according to the organization.

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