New Numbers Detail Strain on London Food Bank As ‘Great Unknown’ Looms

New Numbers Detail Strain on London Food Bank As Great

The London Food Bank Saw Increased Demand for Support in 2024, its Year-End Numbers Show, part of a trend with no signs of stopping. The Report Comes as the Food Bank and Others are grappling with the Economic Uncertainty posed by a potential trade war with the United States. Our Jennifer Bieman Reports on the Food Bank’s 2024 Totals and What’s Next in 2025.

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More Hampers, More People

The Food Bank Distributed 67,177 Hampers in 2024, up three per hundred from 2023. Those Hampers supported 192.785 People, an Increase of 10 per cent from 2023.

The Three per cent Increase is Smaller Than Previous Year-Over-Year Totals, when the Food Bank was seeing double-digit spikes, but the constant upward press on asked is a serious concern, said co-exuctif director glen pearson.

“There are constant stomach. It’s not INCREASING AS STEEPLY, But requires is still going up and it’s putting a lot of food banks in a precarious position, ”pearson said.

In 2024, The London Food Bank Began Illustration Demand for Support in A Different Way, Measuring It Against The City’s Population, Said Co-Executive Director Jane Roy.

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“Almost 10 per cent of Londoners Came to the Food Bank for help. That was staggering when we look at it like that, ”Roy Said. “The thing that hit me was just How Much of London’s Population Related On Food Assistance.”

The Food Bank has seen a 70 per cent Increase in the number of Hampers It Distributes, and a 79 per cent Increase in the number of individuals it supports, sincere 2019.

Fewer Post-Seconde Students

Six per hundred of the visits to the London Food Bank in 2024 we by College or University Students, The Year-End Report Said.

The total is down from the year before.

In 2023, The London Food Bank Rushed to Accuomdate A Steep Increase in the Number of International Students Coming Through Its Doors, A concern it worked closely with fanshawe to address, pearson said.

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“There Came the Change of Federal Policy,” Pearson Said of the January 2024 Decision to Cap International Student Permit.

“It meant that fewer Students were coming to us. We weren’t expecting that. It Came from a Policy in Ottawa that we didn’t see come. ”

2025: ‘The Great Unknown’

Donald Trump Speaks at Primary Election Night Party at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds in Columbia, SC, Feb. 24, 2024. (AP photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

The High Cost of Living, London’s Increasing Population and the Economic Fallout of Us President Donald Trump’s Avowed Tariffs on Canadian Goods Are Making 2025 A Wildcard, Pearson Said.

“We’re Moving Into the Great Unknown,” Pearson Said. “So much changes is happening all at ounce.”

The Group Representing Ontario Food Banks was working on some Modeling and projections for its member agencies, Roy Said, but there has been so much Economic Uncertainty in recent months that they are putting the project on hold.

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Even within the Threat of A Us-Canada Trade War and A Potential Recement, Some Food Banks Are Already Rationation the Support They Provide, Pearson Said. Others are at Risk of Closing Entirely.

Though the London Food Bank continues to receive constant, UNWAVERING support from donors, other agencies it supports – included Community food banks, local resource centers and community meals – are facing extreme press, pearson said.

“Frontline agencies are struggling like mad to survive,” Pearson Said. “I WORRY the System Itself is Becoming Far More fragile.”

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London Food Bank: by the Numbers

  • 1.6 million – kilograms of food donated in 2024
  • 48,000 – Approximate Number of Hours Volunteers Spent Helping Out in 2024
  • 45,600 km – The distance Food Bank Vehicle Travelled in 2024
  • 5.598 – Average Number of Households Each Month Seeking Assistance in 2024
  • 58 – The Percentage of Food Donations that were fresh or Frozen in 2024

Recounded from Editorial

  1. Chris Vollick and Brian Meehan Assembly Hampers of Non-Perishable Food for Families at The London Food Bank on Thursday, March 28, 2024. (Mike Hensen/The London Free Press)

    Ontario Food Bank Usage Hits Grim Milestone

  2. Volunteers from the London Branch of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association Unload a Truck of Food, Including Fresh Bread, at The London Food Bank on Saturday Dec. 21, 2024. (Jennifer Bieman/The London Free Press)

    Muslim Youth Group Deliverse 1,600 kg in Donations to London Food Bank

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