With all the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals to be had, shoppers are being asked to think about Ontarians struggling to afford food and rent.

On Giving Tuesday (Dec. 2), Food Banks Canada is appealing to donors to help with record demand for emergency food assistance, as shown in a new report.

Feed Ontario released its 2025 statistics on Dec. 1, which revealed more than 1 million people accessed food banks in Ontario between April 2024 and March 2025.

Food Banks Canada said Canadian food banks saw 2.2 million monthly visitors — double the rate of 2019. The report noted more than one million Ontario residents accessed a food bank this year.

Importance of holiday giving

Erin Filey-Wronecki, chief development and partnerships officer for Food Banks Canada, said Canadian food banks rely on the holiday season for about 50 per cent of their annual donations.

Following the shopping frenzy of Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Filey-Wronecki said Giving Tuesday is a time to reflect on others who may be struggling to pay rent and put food on the table.

“It’s a moment to collect yourself before the hullabaloo of the holiday season,” said Filey-Wronecki. “It gives you a chance to give back, because across the country, so many of us will not be able to participate in some of these amazing fun family and friends activities.”

More working people using food banks

The latest Food Banks Canada report revealed more food bank clients are working full or part-time hours.

Filey-Wronecki said almost 20 per cent of people accessing food banks list employment as their main source of income.

The report also showed 76 per cent of people who visited a food bank this year are rental tenants and 61 per cent collect social assistance.

Children represent 29 per cent of food bank clients.

Unaffordable rents are eating into food budgets for more Canadians, Filey-Wronecki added.

“We are seeing 66 per cent of income from food bank clients goes to their housing,” Filey-Wronecki said. “That is a huge source of strain and it’s not flexible.”

Canadians are having to make difficult choices between rent and food at the end of every month.

“More than 70 per cent of food bank clients are paying market rent, so housing is really putting a huge strain on the food bank system,” Filey-Wronecki added.

Recommendations to government

The HungerCount numbers are still trending in the wrong direction, Filey-Wronecki added and Food Banks Canada anticipates an even greater need for emergency food assistance in 2026.

Filey-Wronecki said Food Banks Canada has issued recommendations to the federal government to help alleviate the need. The organization has advocated for a groceries and essentials benefit or a top-up to the GST rebate, to help low-income Canadians with rising food costs.

Food Banks Canada has also called for enhancements to the Canada Disability Benefit.

“We know a lot of people on disability benefits are relying on food banks,” Filey-Wronecki noted.

Long-term fixes include enhancing the supply of affordable housing and reforming the employment insurance (EI) system.

Filey-Wronecki called the current EI system “antiquated” and insufficient in meeting the needs of gig workers.

“It’s not built for today’s economy,” she said.

Impact of Canada Post strike

While the Canada Post strike was recently suspended, recent flyer delivery stoppages may have impacted the distribution of holiday fundraising appeals food banks and social service agencies rely on to solicit donations.

“These types of disruptions just make their job a little bit harder,” Filey-Wronecki noted. “It just starts the ball rolling, so they’re going to have to make up that revenue over the coming months.”

How to double your donation

For the last six years, Food Banks Canada has partnered with Skip to offer matching donations to Food Banks Canada leading up to Giving Tuesday.

Toronto residents can schedule doorstep pickups of non-perishable donations at givewithskip.ca. Skip will provide a $100 donation per pickup to the Daily Bread Food Bank.