Number of Windsorites who have to use the food bank is growing, report suggests

Paul Gagnon says he's had to choose between paying for food versus rent.

The father of two lives in Windsor, Ont., and is currently unemployed.

"I had to cut costs just to make ends meet," he said. "I paid it back. But that's not the issue there. It's pretty sad that you have to choose between one or the other."

Gagnon arrived at the food bank not long after a press conference by Feed Ontario at the UHC-Hub of Opportunities, Wednesday. At that event, Feed Ontario officials shared a new hunger report that says food insecurity is growing in Windsor and the rest of Ontario.

One in 19 Ontarians now rely on food banks to put food on the table and that usage across the province has grown significantly over the past several years, the report finds. 

Gagnon says he's not surprised at the food insecurity rate in and around the city. 

"I kind of saw it coming a long time ago. You wonder why people have a struggle with paying the rent. They never have enough food as it is." 

The 47-year-old says he's been using food banks for "quite a few years now," because of prices that keep going up. That, he says, and because it's difficult to find a job even when there is work out there.

"I applied myself online at least three or four jobs a day, and I rarely get any phone calls now because I'm a little older," he said. "But I'm starting to see people I know and they're experiencing the same thing."

If a food bank wasn't an option, Gagnon says, he doesn't know what he'd do. 

"A lot of struggle, for sure. Without food banks being around, I probably wouldn't be able to feed the kids I have and myself." 

He says his kids have had a hard time understanding the financial shape his family is in.

"I think the kids today are more materialistic when it comes to, you know, buying PlayStations, stuff like that. [It] plays a big role. But I believe that the prices have a lot of a serious effect on that, especially for Windsor."

June Muir is the CEO of UHC-Hub of Opportunities. She says the escalating reliance people have on food banks illustrates a system-wide problem.

"In Windsor the reality is stark … year after year we've noticed a troubling surge … the role of foodbankers has evolved," Muir said. 

Muir says before the COVID-19 pandemic, UHC was serving roughly 300 people per week. Today, that number has shot up to 1,500 per week.

"I just hope that we come to some kind of resolution with this rather than just living on with it like it's no big deal," Gagnon said. "You know, everybody has a voice. And I think that we should all be heard."

The Feed Ontario report was put together, in part, by visitor surveys from 10 member food banks, including Windsor, in July. A total of 333 surveys were completed in person and online.

Andrea Waters, Feed Ontario's communications manager, says while food banks are working hard to service their clients, it's not a solution to food insecurity or poverty.

"It's only through strong public policies that we can ensure every Ontarian has access to all of their basic needs each month," she said. "To put it another way, poverty is a policy choice and our government is the only one who can make meaningful change."

In a statement to CBC News, the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services said the provincial government "continues to invest in programs and services to make life more affordable for everybody across Ontario so that nobody gets left behind."

The statement also noted investments the province has already made to help people with disabilities, non-profit organizations (including food banks) and increase the province's stock of affordable housing along with providing more housing assistance.