Feed Ontario

Predecessor	Ontario Association of Food Banks (1992–2019)
Formation	2019
Type	food bank network
Website	https://feedontario.ca/

Feed Ontario, formerly Ontario Association of Food Banks (OAFB),^[1][2] is a food bank network in the Canadian province of Ontario. Feed Ontario represents more than 1,200 food banks and hunger relief organizations in Ontario, and serves more than 1 million people each year.^[3]

The 2024 report shows that the food banks usage across Ontario has increased drastically year on year and has been stretched to its limits. With over 1/3rd of food banks reporting having to reduce the amount of food they can provide during a visit.^[4]

• 1,001,105 unique individuals accessed food banks across Ontario. This is an increase of 25% compared to the previous year, and 86% since 2019–2020
• 7,689,580 total visits, an increase of 31% compared to the previous year, and 134% since 2019–2020.
• 43% of visitors were new, an increase of 43% since 2019–2020
• 71% of visitors were adults, and 29% children
• Every region in Ontario experienced a double digit percent increase in food bank use over the previous year
• 53.1% of food bank clients are single-people households
• 88.2% of clients are either rental or social housing tenants
• 24% of food bank households are people with employment as their primary source of income, this is 2x the rate pre-pandemic

Ontario Association of Food Banks

Abbreviation	OAFB
Successor	Feed Ontario
Formation	1992
Dissolved	2019
Website	http://www.oafb.ca (defunct)

Founded in 1992, the OAFB represented 125 food banks, and over 1,100 hunger-relief organizations across the province, including: urban and rural food banks, community kitchens, breakfast clubs and school meal programs, community food centres, emergency shelters, and seniors' facilities.^[5] The mission of the Ontario Association of Food Banks was to "strengthen communities by providing food banks with food, resources, and solutions that address both short and long-term food insecurity."^[5]

Every year, the OAFB released a research report on hunger and food bank use in Ontario. This has continued after the rebranding.

In 2015, the OAFB Hunger Report^[6] revealed:

• 358,963 people accessed food banks across Ontario in March 2015, with 120,554 of those clients being children under 18 years of age
• 35% increase in senior citizens visiting food banks over the previous year
• 49% of food bank clients are single-person households
• 90% of food bank clients are either rental or social housing tenants
• Over 12% of senior citizens fall below Ontario's Low Income Measure. This number more than doubles to 27% when looking at seniors who also identify as single
• Senior citizens are expected to represent 23% of the population by 2030
• Single person households represent almost 50% of those who visit food banks, an 11% increase over the past 5 years
• The average food bank client spends 70% of their income on rent, leaving very little for all other necessities
• 1 in 3 jobs in Ontario is temporary, contract, or part-time. An individual working full-time, at minimum-wage will have an annual income of approximately $21,000, falling well below Ontario's Low Income Measure

In 2007, the OAFB had been noted for innovative programming by The Globe and Mail^[7] and the Toronto Star.^[8]

On 11 February 2019, the organization changed its name to 'Feed Ontario' to better reflect its modern activities that have evolved since the past.^[1][2]

• List of food banks

• Official Website of the Ontario Association of Food Banks (OAFB) Archived 2009-09-04 at the Wayback Machine (defunct)
• Official website of Feed Ontario