HungerCount 2022 shows that in March of this year there were nearly 1.5 million visits to food banks in Canada, the highest March usage on record even though unemployment rates were at their lowest on record in the same month.  The report from Food Banks of Canada says that 2022 is showing a trend not previously observed. Despite the unemployment rate being at 5.3 per cent, the lowest on record since 1976, food bank visits are the highest they have ever been.

This year’s food bank usage represents a 15 per cent increase compared to March 2021, and a 35 per cent increase compared to March 2019. Overall, food bank visits have increased since 2019, with the highest year-over-year increase in usage since the aftermath of the 2008 recession. The report states that stagnant provincial social assistance rates, the end of pandemic-related benefits, and soaring inflation have all affected the ability of individuals in Canada to feed themselves and their families.

Hungercount 2022 describes the situation in Canada as going from a storm to a hurricane. According to the survey respondents, the top three reasons people accessed a food bank this year were food costs, low provincial social assistance rates, and housing costs. With the end of pandemic benefits in late 2021, provincial social assistance is the main source of income for nearly 50 per cent of food bank clients. The single-person households accounting for 45.4 per cent of food bank clients.

While the percentage of children accessing food bank services continues to slowly decline, children, who represent approximately 20 per cent of the general population, are one third of food bank clients.  The percentage of seniors accessing food banks has increased from 6.8 per cent in 2019 to 8.9 per cent in 2022.

For the first time, there was a significant increase in the number of food bank clients who reported employment as their main source of income.  The percentage of Indigenous people accessing a food bank rose from 8 per cent in 2021 to 15.3 per cent in 2022.