One in five Canadians have an acquaintance who had to resort to using food banks to meet their needs, according to a new national survey.
Nanos Research conducted the survey between May 31 and June 2 and found that while only 2% of respondents said that they had used food banks themselves, nearly twice as many knew of a family member who had.
Polling over 1,000 Canadians, the survey found that more than 10% of respondents knew of a friend or acquaintance who had received assistance from a food bank.
The survey’s findings were consistent with those conducted a month prior, with a slight 2% increase in respondents who did not know of someone who had used a food bank and the remaining 1% said that they’d “prefer not to say.”
Around 12% of respondents said they were unsure across both surveys.
Respondents aged 35 to 54 in both Atlantic Canada and B.C. were more likely to know someone who received assistance from a food bank.
About 78% of Quebec residents and those over the age of 55 nationwide, were the most likely to respond that they had not used a food bank, or known someone who had.
When asked if increasing food costs have affected their shopping habits, the majority of respondents said that they were now seeking out less expensive foods, with 29% saying that they had already stockpiled food as a means to stave off ever-rising prices.
One in five respondents said that they were eating less food altogether, while another 28% said that the increased food costs were not affecting their household shopping habits.
The majority of respondents also felt that not enough was being done to help those in need gain access to affordable food.
Almost half of respondents, 40%, said that they had donated money or goods to food banks recently, while another 18% said that they had personally given food to a family member or friend.
A small percentage of respondents, 3%, said that they had volunteered at a food bank, while another 14% said that they had recently loaned money to a loved one.
Food Banks Canada released its 2024 Poverty Report Card last month and the only provinces not to receive D-’s or D+’s were Quebec and Prince Edward Island, though they’re still only scraped by with a C+ and C-, respectively.
The Poverty Report Card accounts for four measures: experience of poverty, poverty measures, material deprivation, and legislative process. Each measure accounts for various indicators, which receive their own rating and grade, affecting the overall rating. When analyzing the tables, the most common grade among indicators is an F.
Between 2020 and 2022, poverty rates in Canada increased by 55%, from 6.4% to nearly 10% of people in Canada living below the poverty line.
Almost a quarter of all Canadians experience food insecurity.
“We should expect that poverty rates will continue to rise as new data becomes available. This means more struggling seniors, more children experiencing food insecurity, and more people across Canada worrying about making ends meet,” said Food Banks Canada in a statement.
Food banks saw a 30% increase in demand last year.
Specific jurisdictions saw differing changes, with British Columbia seeing an increase of almost 60%, which increased to over 100% in rural communities with populations of less than 10,000.