More people relying on food assistance across the country

Food Banks Canada released the Hunger Count for 2025 which shows the numbers continuing to rise.

The data comes from more than 2,700 food banks and details across the board the troubling trends Canada is facing.

Across all visits, 33 per cent are children, 8 per cent are seniors, and 40 per cent are people on social assistance or disability support, showing the most vulnerable are relying on food assistance.

But it’s not just those below the poverty line; two-parent families make up 23 per cent of visits, and 19 per cent report that they are employed.

Kim Wilhelm, the CEO of The Food Bank of Waterloo Region, who was on The Mike Farwell Show to talk about the crisis and how it’s impacting people in Waterloo Region.

“What we are seeing nationally is definitely reflected what were seeing here at home.” Kim said when asked what the numbers are looking like here in the region.

“Gone are the days where food banks are short term solutions to get somebody get over that hump in life. We are seeing that familes and households are coming back month after month which is just showing us how dependant on programs people really are to get by”

Kim stressed that this isn’t a problem that can be solved by the region by itself, saying food insecurity is a symptom of poverty, when people can’t afford to buy food.

To address only food banks would be to address only a symptom of the problem and not the cause, with the call being made to invest in affordable housing and modernizing the Canada Disability Benefit so nobody falls through the cracks.

The Food Bank of Waterloo Region will release the local impact report on Thursday, going over the exact numbers and what sorts of increases we’ve seen in the last year.

In the mean time The Food Bank of Waterloo Region is always open for volunteers and donations, be it in cash or in time.

For more information or to donate you can visit the Food Bank of Waterloo Region’s website.