Food banks are struggling, but it’s hard to feel charitable when some people treat them like an immigration perk
The struggling food bank has been a recurring motif in the news in recent weeks. Food aid agencies across the country are presenting various regional hunger reports to the public, and the results are consistently depressing: usage is higher than ever, donations are down and “we don’t know how we’re going to keep up.”
On the other hand, food bank abuse seems to be a recurring problem. What’s being done to prevent it from happening? It’s not all that clear.
From Grok – What percentage of foodbank users in the GTA are not Canadian citizens?
43% of food bank users in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) are not Canadian citizens, according to the most recent data from the Daily Bread Food Bank’s Who’s Hungry Report 2024. This report, based on surveys of over 1,300 clients across 79 food banks in Toronto (a core part of the GTA) and intake data from the city’s Link2Feed system, covers the period from April 2023 to March 2024. It shows that among all surveyed clients, 57% are Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples, while the remaining 43% include temporary residents (22%, such as international students and work visa holders), refugee claimants (12%), those under the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel program (6%), and undocumented individuals (1%).
This figure reflects a slight increase in non-citizens compared to 2023 (when 49% were non-citizens). Among new clients—those visiting for the first time, who make up 57% of total visits—the share is higher at 73%, with 80% of them being newcomers to Canada (less than 5 years in the country). Overall visits reached a record 3.49 million, up 38% from the previous year, highlighting rising food insecurity amid economic pressures like housing costs and inflation.
For context, this aligns with national trends from Food Banks Canada’s HungerCount 2024, where 34% of clients nationwide are recent newcomers (in Canada 10 years or less), but GTA data shows a higher concentration of non-citizens due to the region’s diverse immigrant population.
Like locusts.
🚨HOLY CRAP! – NEW UNEARTHED VIDEO FROM 2022
shows an Indian Youtuber secretly filming in a Sydney Nova Scotia food bank
the ENTIRE place is filled with YOUNG South Asians waiting for food to show up and then raiding it
the host then encourages his viewers to come to Canada!! pic.twitter.com/ZTCE535oc3
— Tablesalt 🇨🇦🇺🇸 (@Tablesalt13) December 10, 2025
Donations subsidize the ruin of our society.
