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Food and Nutrition

Household Food Insecurity

Household food insecurity is the inadequate or insecure access to food due to financial constraints. The experience of food insecurity can range from concerns about running out of food before there is money to buy more, to the inability to afford a balanced diet, to going hungry, missing meals, and in extreme cases, not eating for whole days because of a lack of food and money for food.

Household food insecurity is a serious public health issue that can negatively affect the health of individuals, families, and our communities. The physical and mental health impacts of food insecurity are significant. Living in a food insecure household is associated with a greater risk of developing a wide range of chronic diseases and mental health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, depression and anxiety, as well as increased risk of poor oral health, infections and injury. Children experiencing food insecurity are also at greater risk for health problems, particularly mental health problems that can last into adulthood.

Adults living in food insecure households are more likely to:

have difficulty managing chronic conditions
not take prescription medications as prescribed due to cost
have higher health care usage
die prematurely

Household food insecurity is an extremely costly problem for our healthcare system because:

It increases the risk of hospitalization.
It results in longer hospital stay and increased readmissions.

The average health care costs of someone experiencing severe food insecurity are more than double those of people who are food-secure.

Household food insecurity impacts our whole community:

It affects educational outcomes, as hunger and malnutrition, can impede children’s cognitive development, concentration, and academic performance.
It perpetuates a cycle of poverty, hindering economic development and reducing community productivity.
It can lead to increased social isolation and psychological distress, as individuals and families experience chronic stress and anxiety about their next meal.

Individuals and families living on low incomes struggle the most to cover the cost of their basic needs - food, rent, and other necessities. The lower the household income, the more likely a household is to experience household food insecurity.

Household food insecurity is an urgent and worsening public health problem and an important issue for local, provincial, and federal decision-makers.

The most effective solutions to reduce household food insecurity are income based. Keep reading to learn more.

Household food insecurity is often confused with other key terms such as food security and community food security. The definition of household food insecurity is written above: inadequate or insecure access to food due to financial constraints. It is an experience-based measure of pervasive material deprivation. Food insecurity ranges from worrying about running out of food and/or limiting food selection (marginal food insecurity), to compromising in quality and/or quantity of food (moderate food insecurity), to missing meals, reducing food intake and at the most extreme going day(s) without food (severe food insecurity), all because of lack of money.

Food security is when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and dietary needs for an active and healthy lifestyle.

Community food security is a measure of food access in our communities. Think of community initiatives like farmer’s markets, community gardens, cooking programs and emergency food services (e.g., food banks and meal programs). While these programs offer a multitude of benefits (e.g., reducing social isolation, improving food literacy, providing temporary food relief in times of emergency), they have not been shown to reduce food insecurity in the long-term.

At a community level, food security is achieved through a local sustainable food system that allows for community self-reliance, social justice, and equal access for everyone.

Household food insecurity is worsening. One-in-three households (30.7%) in Simcoe Muskoka experienced some level of household food insecurity in 2023. Food insecurity in 2023 was significantly higher locally and provincially compared to the previous four years.

Household Food Insecurity Chart: Chart showing rates of household food insecurity rising over the past 4 years. In Simcoe Muskoka, in 2023, rates were significantly higher than the previous year, with 1 in 3 households (30.7%) experiencing household food insecurity. This is higher than the provincial rate which has also increased significantly. 2023 Nutritious Food Basic Infographic: Infographic showing food basket costs and food affordability data for Simcoe Muskoka residents in 2023. Includes actions on what you can do to help reduce rates of household food insecurity.

The risk of food insecurity is higher for households that:

live with low incomes
have a lone-parent, especially a female lone-parent
rent their home vs. own their home

More detailed information about household food insecurity in Simcoe Muskoka can be found on our Household Food Insecurity HealthSTATS webpage.

The health unit monitors food affordability annually, using the Nutritious Food Basket survey tool. This information is used to calculate the cost of basic nutritious food in our region. Regional food cost data, combined with a series of ten income and expense scenarios, are used to estimate the affordability of housing and basic nutritious food, relative to income.

The income and expense scenarios demonstrate the percentage of total income individuals and families need to pay for the cost of food and rent. Year after year, the Nutritious Food Basket survey results show that for many Simcoe Muskoka residents it is very difficult to afford rent and put nutritious food on the table.

More information on food affordability in Simcoe Muskoka can be found on our Monitoring Food Affordability in Simcoe Muskoka webpage and our Nutritious Food Basket HealthSTATS webpage.

Download the 2024 Nutritious Food Basket Infographic
Watch our Presentation – 2024 Nutritious Food Basket Survey Results

Statistics Canada data indicates that household food insecurity in Canada and Ontario has increased significantly during a period of unprecedented inflation. In 2023, 22.9% of people in ten provinces lived in a food-insecure household. This amounts to 8.7 million people, including 2.1 million children (compared to 6.9 million people and almost 1.8 million children in 2022), In Ontario, 3.6 million people (24.5%) lived in a food-insecure household in 2023.

In Ontario, children’s household food insecurity rates increased significantly from 24.6% in 2022 to 30.7% in 2023 (see table below). Higher rates of household food insecurity impacts the health care system and the health of our communities. The increasing rates demonstrates the urgent need for effective income solutions to reduce household food insecurity.

Charitable food programs (such as food banks and soup kitchens) have grown rapidly in the past few years, alongside skyrocketing food and housing costs, and weakening social support programs. Charitable food programs have been increasingly relied upon to address food insecurity but cannot keep up with the demand for emergency food needs. They started out in the 1980’s, as a short-term measure during the recession to respond to income emergencies, but unfortunately have now become part of the main response to household food insecurity. Staff and volunteers work tirelessly at programs, but unfortunately, they are not able to reduce household food insecurity.

Household food insecurity is a systemic problem of inadequate income that cannot be solved by providing stop-gap emergency food relief. Despite more people turning to food banks than ever before, only 1 in 5 people who are food insecure use a food bank due to issues such as availability, operating hours, transportation, health or cultural dietary needs, and the stigma associated with receiving charity. This means many people are struggling to get by, sacrificing their health and livelihoods. The Ontario charitable food sector advocates for everyone to have secure incomes to reduce household food insecurity.

Municipalities and community groups have an important role in taking action to reduce household food insecurity. Here are some ideas about what can be done:

Increase awareness of household food insecurity and poverty by visiting the Learn More tab below.
Speak up and talk about household food insecurity within your networks – share key information and statistics on social media or through other opportunities.
Take action by advocating to the federal and provincial governments for policy solutions that target improving incomes for those most affected - use the Advocacy e-letter from Community Food Centres Canada to send the message directly to your local MP.
Reach out to us if you would like a personalized, local letter that you can send to your local leaders.
Reach out to us to get started working on long-lasting solutions, such as municipal or community programs and policies that target inadequate income. Some examples are:

Support access to free income tax filing (e.g., offer space or waive fees, promote, provide free transportation - available programs can be found here: 211 Ontario
Create and action municipal poverty reduction plans.
Take part in community coalitions that address household food insecurity.
Lead by example by becoming a Certified Living Wage Employer.
encourage local businesses and organizations to become Certified Living Wage Employers.
Implement municipal policies and programs that put more money in people’s pockets for food, such as:

Implementing subsidy programs to reduce financial barriers to public programs and services (e.g., transit and recreation programs);
Developing or enhancing municipal planning documents and allocate funding to improve active transportation infrastructure to make it easier for residents to access grocery stores and other programs and services, particularly for equity deserving neighbourhoods and populations;
Enhancing employment and workforce development initiatives to attract jobs with livable wages, regular hours and benefits;
Supporting affordable/attainable housing initiatives.

There are many more options for taking action that can be tailored to your community. Please reach out to us to find out more about collaborating on action to reduce household food insecurity.

Our higher levels of governments have a powerful role in reducing household food insecurity by implementing policies and programs that focus on poverty, income and employment.

Effective government solutions to support and advocate for include options within the provincial and federal government’s responsibility.

Provincial government responsibilities:

Establish targets for the reduction of poverty and household food insecurity.
Meet commitments in the Building A Strong Foundation for Success: Reducing Poverty in Ontario (2020-2025) and regularly report on progress.
Implement policies and programs that have been shown to support income adequacy to effectively reduce poverty and household food insecurity, such as:

Increase social assistance rates to match real living costs, indexed to inflation
Strengthen legislation that supports jobs with livable wages, regular hours and benefits
Invest in public programs that make life more affordable for lower-income populations (e.g., affordable/attainable housing).

Federal government responsibilities:

Establish targets for the reduction of household food insecurity.

Meet commitments in the Canadian Poverty Reduction Strategy and regularly report on progress.

Implement policies and programs that have been shown to support income adequacy to effectively reduce poverty and household food insecurity such as:

implement a basic income (in collaboration with provinces and territories);
strengthen the Canada Child Benefit
invest in affordable/attainable housing
reduce income taxes for lower-income households
fulfill commitment to automate income tax return filing

Accelerate important work on benefits targeted at people living in poverty.
Lead by example, by establishing a living wage in all federally regulated workplaces.
Reduce precarious work to improve access to employment benefits for self-employed workers, contract, and part-time workers through the Canada Labour Code.

The health unit participates in local poverty reduction work and collaborates with municipalities and community partners to support policy and program changes that can reduce household food insecurity.

Over the past several years our Board of Health has endorsed advocacy for a basic income, social assistance increases, attainable housing, affordable childcare, and accessible dental care to support reducing inequities that cause household food insecurity.

Our most recent advocacy efforts include our Board of Health endorsing the Association of Local Public Health Agencies resolution regarding the inadequacy of social assistance rates, and writing a letter to The Honourable Doug Ford, calling for income-based policy interventions to effectively reduce household food insecurity. Our Associate Medical Officer of Health published a news release about the urgent and worsening problem of household food insecurity.

The health unit also continues to carry out the Nutritious Food Basket survey annually to monitor and share the results of food affordability in Simcoe Muskoka.

Please reach out to us to find out more about collaborating on action to reduce household food insecurity.