Two-in-three low income Toronto families face food insecurity

Two out of three Toronto families in low-income neighbourhoods are unable to get the food they need and community initiatives such as food banks and school nutrition programs are not able to arrest a problem of this size and scope, according to new research from the University of Toronto.

Food insecurity -- the lack of access to food due to insufficient resources -- was an issue for 80 per cent of families on social assistance in the studied neighbourhoods. Even among the employed, the rate was just under 60 percent.

"Despite the presence of food banks, an alarming number of people are going hungry, which constitutes a serious public health issue," said Sharon Kirkpatrick, who undertook the research as part of her doctoral work at U of T's Department of Nutritional Sciences. "There is a misperception that programs such as food banks are a panacea. Clearly, we need new strategies for confronting the root problem of poverty."

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Ron Payne
Welfare Legal
Hamilton, Ontario