Food Insecurity

What is Food Insecurity?  

2024 Nutritious Food Basket Infographic

Food insecurity means not having enough money to buy the food you need. It can look like:

  • worrying about running out of food
  • choosing cheaper or less healthy foods
  • skipping meals or going without eating

Download the 2024 Nutritious Food Basket Infographic (pdf - 158 KB) 

Food Insecurity is a Serious Public Health Problem

In 2023, almost 1 in 4 households (23.7%) in Ottawa experienced food insecurity (1, 2). 

Food insecurity has an impact on physical and mental health. People in food insecure homes are more likely to (3-12):

  • have mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety
  • have chronic diseases, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes
  • catch infections
  • have poor oral health
  • be injured

Management of chronic health conditions becomes harder because of the added costs to follow therapeutic diets and the ability to afford medications (6, 13, 14). Food insecurity puts a strain on the healthcare system because of the increased medical care needed (1).

The Cost of Eating Well in Ottawa

Every year, Ottawa Public Health monitors food affordability using the Nutritious Food Basket (NFB).

In 2024, the monthly cost of the NFB for a family with two adults and two children, ages 8 and 14, was $1,244.44 (16).

The NFB data is used to assess the cost of living in Ottawa. 

The Cost of Living in Ottawa for Low-Income Households

When food costs from NFB and housing costs are compared to income, the results have consistently shown that low-income households are unable to afford the cost of basic living, including food. 

2024 Income Scenarios table

Taking Action

Access to food is a basic human right.

Food insecurity is an income program that cannot be solved by food-based solutions. There is something that we can all do about it: 

  • Contact your Councilor or Member of Provincial Parliament to express your support for solutions that help everyone afford the cost of living, such as:
    • Higher social assistance rates 
    • Secure employment opportunities  
    • A basic income guarantee (Bill S-233 and Bill C-223) 
    • More affordable housing, public transit and childcare  
    • Reduced income tax for the lowest income households 
    • Free income tax filing support 
  • Share this information about food insecurity.
  • Become a Living Wage Employer.

To learn more

Download the Ottawa Board of Health - Nutritious Food Basket 2024 and Food Insecurity Report (pdf - 303 KB)

Webinar: Nutritious Food Basket 2023 and Food Insecurity in Ottawa (YouTube) - available in English only

Tarasuk V, Li T, Farfard St-Germain A-A. (2022). Household Food Insecurity in Canada 2021. PROOF Food Insecurity Policy Research.

Coleman, A. (2023). Calculating Ontario’s Living Wages. Ontario Living Wage Network.

No Money for Food is Cent$less. Ontario Dietitians in Public Health.

Ontario Dietitians in Public Health. (2020). Position Statement on Responses to Food Insecurity. 

Tarasuk, V. (2017). Implications of a Basic Income Guarantee for Household Food Insecurity. PROOF: Food Insecurity Policy Research. 

PROOF. Indigenous Food Insecurity.

Food Banks Canada. (2022). Hunger Count 2022: From a Storm to a Hurricane.

Ontario Living Wage Network. (2022). Living Wage Rates.

References
  1. Public Health Ontario. Household food insecurity. Retrieved July 19, 2024, from https://www.publichealthontario.ca/en/Data-and-Analysis/Health-Equity/Household-Food-Insecurity
  2. Statistics Canada. (2022). Canadian Income Survey (SDDS 5200).
  3. Jessiman-Perreault G, McIntyre L. (2017). The household food insecurity gradient and potential reductions in adverse population mental health outcomes in Canadian adults. SSM -Population Health. 3:464-72. 
  4. McIntyre et al. (2017). The pervasive effect of youth self-report of hunger on depression over 6 years of follow up. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 52:537-47.
  5. Men F, Elgar F, Tarasuk V. (2021). Food insecurity is associated with mental health problems among Canadian youth. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. 75(8):741-8. 
  6. Tarasuk et al. (2013). Chronic physical and mental health conditions among adults may increase vulnerability to household food insecurity. J Nutr. 143(11):1785-93. doi: 10.3945/jn.113.178483. 
  7. Melchior M, Chastang J, Falissard B, et al. (2012). Food insecurity and children’s mental health: a prospective birth cohort study. PLoS One. 7(12):e52615.  
  8. Kirkpatrick and McIntyre & Potestio. (2010). Child hunger and long-term adverse consequences for health. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 164(8):754-62.
  9. Tait C, L’Abbe M, Smith P, et al. (2018). The association between food insecurity and incident type 2 diabetes in Canada: a population-based cohort study. PLoS One. 13(5):e0195962.   
  10. McIntyre L, Williams J, Lavorato D, et al. (2012). Depression and suicide ideation in late adolescence and early adulthood are an outcome of child hunger. Journal of Affective Disorders. 150(1):123-9.
  11. Cox J, Hamelin AM, McLinden T, et al. (2016). Food insecurity in HIV-hepatitis C virus co-infected individuals in Canada: the importance of co-morbidities. AIDS and Behavior. 21(3):792-802.
  12. Muirhead V, Quinonez C, Figueriredo R, et al. (2009). Oral health disparities and food insecurity in working poor Canadians. Community Dentistry and Oral Epidemiology. 37:294-304.
  13. Chan J, DeMelo M, Gingras J, et al. (2015). Challenges of diabetes self-management in adults affected by food insecurity in a large urban centre of Ontario, Canada. International Journal of Endocrinology. Article ID 903468.
  14. Men F, Gundersen C, Urquia ML, et al. (2019). Prescription medication nonadherence associated with food insecurity: a population-based cross-sectional study. CMAJ Open. 7(3):E590-E7. 
  15. Men F, Gundersen C, Urquia ML, et al. (2020). Food insecurity is associated with higher health care use and costs among Canadian adults. Health Affairs. 39(8):1377-85. 
  16. Ottawa Public Health. (2024). Ottawa Board of Health: 2024 Nutritious Food Basket Results and Food Insecurity Report.

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