As a part of our work to end hunger in Ontario, we recently brought food banks together for our Food Bank Day at Queen’s Park to share solutions informed by our real-time provincial food bank use data with our elected representatives.
Every year, we lead food banks to meet with MPPs across all parties to discuss the pressures food banks are facing and allow public officials to learn about the challenges we hear first-hand from people who need to turn to a food bank. This collaborative approach allows us to harness the collective voices of our network and advocate for change to address the root causes of hunger.
This year was our most successful Food Bank Day yet, with 17 food banks from our network attending over 20 meetings with MPPs from every party, including Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response Jill Dunlop, Minister of Red Tape Reduction Andrea Khanjin, Attorney General Doug Downey, Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement Stephen Crawford, and party leaders MPP Marit Stiles and MPP Mike Schreiner.
Feed Ontario with Minister Jill Dunlop and MPP Steve Pinsonneault.
Our solution: improving social assistance and increasing workforce participation
During our meetings, MPPs had valuable insights into how food banks can advance our policy solutions and were unanimously supportive of our proposed change to the provincial social assistance program Ontario Works (OW).
1 in 3 households that need to turn to a food bank to get by rely on OW, and making smart updates to the program could help reduce pressure on community organizations while helping more Ontarians participate in the workforce and build financial stability.
Feed Ontario, food bankers, and Minister Andrea Khanjin after our meeting.
One key area we see for improvement is the structure of the program’s earned income rules. Currently, OW recipients can only earn $200 per month at work before their benefits begin to be reduced, making it challenging for someone to get back on their feet once they find a job. This limit has not been updated since 2013, despite significant increases in minimum wage and cost of living.
In our conversations with MPPs, we suggested that the Province update the earned income rules, increasing the amount recipients can earn to $600, to help allow those who need the support of OW to take on additional work, reduce reliance on food banks, and assist successful transitions off the program.
This would be a low-cost improvement that supports the goals that food banks and the Province share of increasing workforce participation, reducing reliance on food banks, and strengthening communities across Ontario.
Feed Ontario, food bankers, and provincial NDP leader MPP Marit Stiles.
Together, we can make a difference
Working to end hunger means making sure people and families in Ontario have the food they need today, while advocating for change to create a future where no one needs to turn to a food bank in the first place.
Sharing our solutions and real-time food bank use data with policy makers is just one way we’re taking action to make this possible. We’re also raising awareness with tools like Hunger in My Riding, that allow users to see how many people need to turn to a food bank in their community, and Fork in The Road, a digital experience that sheds light on the everyday challenges food bank visitors face.
We believe that there are small steps anyone can take to make a difference in their community. If you’re interested in getting involved, you can check out the resources we’ve created, sign up for our newsletter to learn more and stay informed about our work to end hunger, or lend your voice to our petition to help us advocate for meaningful change and strengthen communities throughout the province.