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Advocate
Click on image to learn how you can make a difference this Hunger Action Month.
The Food Bank of Waterloo Region is experiencing the highest need for food assistance in our community in our 40-year history. This is a clear sign that more needs to be done to reduce food insecurity.
The emergency food programs available through our partners in the Community Food Assistance Network help those experiencing immediate need, but they don’t address the root cause of food insecurity, which is poverty.
That’s why food banks alone are not the solution.
To meaningfully address food insecurity, all levels of government need to implement policies that reduce poverty and improve the incomes of food-insecure households.
Together with Feed Ontario, our provincial partner, and Food Banks Canada, our national partner, we call on our elected officials to make addressing food insecurity and poverty a priority. Both Feed Ontario and Food Banks Canada have put forward several policy recommendations on social assistance, living wages, and affordable housing for the provincial and federal governments to consider. The Food Bank of Waterloo Region supports these recommendations for addressing food insecurity and poverty in the long term.
We encourage you to reach out to your member of provincial parliament or member of parliament and ask them to implement the policy recommendations put forward by Feed Ontario and Food Banks Canada. You’ll find the recommendations on their respective websites below.
Policy Recommendations
Find Your Elected Official
Groceries and Essentials Benefit
Half of Canadians are living paycheque to paycheque, and roughly seven million people in Canada are food insecure. This means that millions of people all over the country are struggling to afford food.
People in Canada need immediate relief. That’s why The Food Bank of Waterloo Region is joining Food Banks Canada in calling on the federal government to introduce a Groceries and Essentials Benefit for low-income families struggling to afford necessities like food and shelter. Here’s how you can join our call for action and help advocate for change.
Send a letter to your member of parliament
Canada Disability Benefit
The rising cost of living is affecting everyone, but it’s hitting Canadians with disabilities even harder. People with disabilities are twice as likely to experience poverty, and one in seven who rely on food banks get support from provincial disability income. In early 2024, The Food Bank of Waterloo Region joined over 30 organizations, including food banks and community groups, and asked the federal government to make sure the Canada Disability Benefit is inclusive, fully funded in the 2024 budget, and open to people with all types of disabilities. You can learn more and support this effort at fundthebenefit.ca.