University-educated now using food banks

Farmers Forum staff

OTTAWA — The cost of living has become a “critical issue” as more post-secondary educated young people are relying on food banks to eat, the Department of Agriculture says.

At the same time, the number of people going to food banks is increasing dramatically. In fact, 4.1 million visits were made to Toronto food banks between March 2024 and April 2025, an increase of hundreds of thousands in one year. The number of people accessing food banks has increased for nine straight years and last year reached a record one-million people in Ontario. The population of Ontario is 16 million.

One of the most concerning reports is that the people using food banks seem to be younger and most have postsecondary education and full-time employment. According to a Food Banks Canada report to the federal government, 28 per cent of university students skip meals because of a lack of money.

A staggering statistic by Restaurants Canada’s 2025 Foodservice Facts report found that fewer people were eating out. The report said that 75 % of Canadians were eating out less due to the rising cost of living, that rises to 81 % for younger Canadians, aged 18 to 34.

According to Canadian Income Surveys, 10 million people live in food insecure households. This is 25 % of the population.

According to Food Banks Canada, 34 % of food bank users are newcomers to Canada within the past 10 years.