Demand for food aid could increase by nearly 10% in Quebec in 3 years: study

The number of requests for food aid could increase by at least 10 per cent over the next three years in the province, according to a study commissioned by Food Banks of Quebec (BAQ), which is now calling on the government for more funding.

“I think it’s hard for people to accept or to know that in Quebec their neighbour might be going hungry, I think it’s a difficult thing to accept,” said Véronique Beaulieu-Fowler, the director of philanthropy at Food Banks Quebec. 

BAQ responded to 2.93 million requests for food assistance per month in 2024 and expects to receive 3.22 million in 2027, according to the economic study. It’s over 320,000 more requests within three years — an increase of over 5 per cent in 2026 and over 4 per cent in 2027.

“With this study, we are able to anticipate what the coming years will look like for our network, which is already facing increased pressure to support people experiencing food insecurity in Quebec,” said Martin Munger, Executive Director of Food Banks of Quebec, in a press release.

“Although we are facing a sad and worrying trend, this allows us to have predictability on how the situation will evolve over the years and to prepare accordingly,” Munger said.

The study conducted by Aviseo also looks at the factors that influence the level of demand for food aid in Quebec.

Those include: poverty and household economic dependence on government transfers, a less favourable job market for full-time work, the increase in the cost of housing and newcomers with precarious status. The study found these factors alone explain 71 per cent of the demand for food aid.

“We want people to be able to feed themselves across Quebec“

“Foodbanks in Quebec is a network of organizations with 34 members across the province, including 19 moissants like this one, moissants-rives-sues, which are very large scale foodbanks as you can see. And we’ve been working very, very hard to build new ways of finding food,” said Beaulieu-Flower. “We want people to be able to feed themselves across Quebec.”

BAQ says the province subsidized them last year to the tune of $30 million, about 3 per cent of the total value of food distributed by the organization — and this year they say the aid was reduced to $10 million.

They’re now calling for recurring and predictable financial assistance for the coming years — requesting funding of $38 million in 2025-2026, $36 million in 2026-2027 and $34 million in 2027-2028.  

“As long as structural measures and actions that address the roots of poverty and social inequality are not implemented, we will be faced with this increase. Given the results of this study, we hope to be able to establish a constant and predictable agreement with the Government of Quebec to ensure assistance for the most vulnerable,” Munger said.

Beaulieu-Fowler says 34-35 per cent of children are the main beneficiaries of food help in Quebec, and now they are calling on the government for more funding and to invest in long-term solutions. 

“We want to make sure that we can build larger systems where we’re going to recuperate more food, have stronger partnerships, and invest in making sure that we have enough food to respond to this increase in demand,” said Beaulieu-Fowler.

She says over the coming months they will be monitoring any trends and finding solutions to the growing matter.

Montrealers spoke openly on the struggles with rising costs, elimination of food bank stigma, and the state of food insecurity.

“Like 10 per cent mean that is scary for me. Right now to me, the prices are already too high, so when I hear 10 per cent, that scares me,” said one Montrealer. “It’s been getting harder and harder to buy the food I used to buy.”

Another says “It’s really scary. I mean, honestly, years ago I went to a food bank with my mom, so I understand the need for it, and it’s such an essential, I just don’t understand how this can even happen.” Adding, “Even when I was younger with my mom, I was so embarrassed. I didn’t tell anyone. I only recently started telling people I used to, I went to a food bank once, so I think it does because I mean it’s important, everyone needs to eat, right?”

Food Banks Quebec oversees nearly 1,300 food aid organizations across the province.