Food Banks Canada released their annual Hunger Count report for 2025 on October 27th, highlighting the fallout from the ever-escalating pace of food cost increases. The Hunger Count is an annual event counting attendance at participating food banks across the country for the month of March.
“Every year, food banks across the country are setting new records,” reads the opening line of the summary of findings. Food banks recorded almost 2.2 million visits in the 2025 count – double that of only six years ago.
While the monthly Consumer Price Index reporting general inflation has been hovering around 2% over the last year, the cost of food was reported almost double that, at 3.9% increase in September.
Likewise, the cost of housing has far outpaced any increase in the purchasing power of average wages over the last several years.
On Salt Spring, 45% of renters and 20% of homeowners are spending more than 30% of their income on housing according to the latest Vital Signs report by the Salt Spring Island Foundation. 30% of gross income is considered ‘affordable’ by general standards. The Hunger Count reports that housing now consumes two-thirds of the disposable income of the lowest income workers leaving less for food and anything else.
On the income side, a higher than ever proportion of food bank users report employment income as their primary source of income.
What is clear is that the cost of meeting basic needs like food and shelter are outpacing and distorting any reporting of general inflation statistics, and that there is a scant and shrinking remainder of monthly income left over after these non-negotiable expenses to stretch across other staples such as clothing, transportation and general household expenses.
On Salt Spring Island, 28% of the individuals accessing the food bank in March, 2025 were children, making clear the high proportion of food bank clientele that are families with children. Those families are part of the ever-increasing demographic unable to cover basic household expenses.
The Hunger Count report should be seen as an alarm bell of an increasingly desperate situation across the country. The report sums it up succinctly with these remarks with regard to the mounting food insecurity crisis.
“This is the cost of inaction — a country where hunger is normalized, where need doubles in half a decade, and where systems meant to provide temporary relief are being asked to do the impossible under permanent demand.”
The Salt Spring Food Bank is operated by Island Community Services and is available for access at the main site location at 268 Fulford-Ganges Road. For more information see Salt Spring Food Bank
See the Hunger Count report at: https://foodbankscanada.ca/hunger-in-canada/hungercount/
