Spike in seniors using Toronto food banks: survey

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An alarming survey from the Ontario Association of Food Banks shows a dramatic increase in the number of seniors who are turning to food banks.

The survey found that 358,963 people visited food banks in March of 2015, a number comparable to the 375,000 in March of 2014.

However, when it came to seniors, Ontario’s food banks saw a 35 per cent spike in users over the age of 65. About 20,000 seniors used food banks in March of this year, compared to 14,800 in March of 2014.

“The face of hunger is changing,” Sharon Lee, the executive director of the Ontario Association of Food Banks, said in a statement.

“Senior citizens are at a growing risk of food insecurity, alongside far too many adults and children in our province. Unless measures are implemented to assist those without proper access to safe and affordable housing, nutritious food, and stable employment, this need will only continue to grow.”

The report found that more and more seniors are considered low-income, falling below the Low Income Measure (LIM). The LIM is calculated based on an annual survey of individual and family income. Households that fail to meet 50 per cent of the median adjusted household income are considered “LIM.”

Approximately 12 per cent of Ontario’s senior citizens fall below the LIM, with this number more than doubling to 27 per cent when looking at seniors who also identify as single.

This number is only expected to grow as the number of seniors in province increases. March also marked another low point: it was the highest number of single people on record (49.2 per cent of all visits) accessing a food bank.

“We have seen a very concerning spike in the number of senior citizens accessing food banks, as well as single-person households,” Lee said.

“We believe that these demographic changes are reflective of a lack of affordable housing in our province, insufficient social assistance and senior citizen support programs, and the precarious nature of employment in Ontario.”

Seniors turning to food banks is an unfortunate nation-wide trend. Earlier this month, Food Banks Canada said it has seen an increase in seniors on pensions and people in receipt of disability benefits.

That group is pushing for the federal and provincial governments to do away with some social assistance programs. Food Banks Canada wants to see the existing bureaucracies that oversee social benefits, such as disability payments, instead funnel all the savings into tax measures that would put more money into the hands of low-income earners.

Food Banks Canada is also calling for the Liberal government bring down the cost of food in the territories, and money to build more affordable housing across the country.

Canada-wide, food bank use was up one per cent over last year: more than 852,000 compared to the almost 842,000 recorded last year.

Click here to read the full report.

 

 

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