May 27, 2024 – Food Banks Canada recently released their annual Poverty Report Cards. The 2024 report – partially based on a survey conducted by Pollara Strategic Insights – shows that Canada has reached a critical turning point, as poverty and food insecurity worsens in every corner of the country.
Food Banks Canada’s 2024 Poverty Report Cards found that almost half (44%) of adult Canadians feel worse off financially compared to last year; one in four are experiencing food insecurity and all jurisdictions except one province are failing in the affordable housing section of the report. These important findings contributed to Food Banks Canada downgrading the federal government’s grade of D in 2023 to a D- in 2024.
In the 2024 Poverty Report Card, the majority of governments in Canada received grades in the D range. Seven out of 10 provinces received a D- for their insufficient approach to poverty reduction. According to Food Banks Canada, this demonstrates that no province has an acceptable level of poverty reduction effort. The 2024 Poverty Report Cards paint a devastating look at the diverse ways poverty is impacting people in every province or territory in Canada:
- Federal government: D- (down from D awarded last year)
- British Columbia: D+ (same as 2023)
- Alberta: D- (lower than a D compared to 2023)
- Saskatchewan: D- (down from D awarded in 2023)
- Manitoba: D- (a significant drop from C- awarded in 2023)
- Ontario: D- (same as 2023)
- Quebec: C+ (lower than a B- awarded in 2023)
- Newfoundland and Labrador: D- (same as 2023)
- New Brunswick: D- (same as 2023)
- Nova Scotia: D- (higher than an F awarded in 2023)
- Prince Edward Island: C- (higher than a D+ awarded in 2023)
While Quebec is trending slightly higher on its poverty reduction efforts (C+) compared to most regions, the province’s standing slipped from a B- in 2023, as policy actions taken in prior years have not kept pace with the rising cost of living. Only Nova Scotia (D- in 2024, F in 2023) and Prince Edward Island (C- in 2024, D+ in 2023) improved on their 2023 grades likely due to an improved legislative focus on poverty reduction over the past year. In the North, housing and living costs are deepening the struggles of communities and signal an urgent need for collective government action.
The full series of report cards provide detailed provincial, national, and territorial analysis and statistics, along with updated interactive, digital maps. For more information, read the report and visit foodbankscanada.ca to view the comparative results mapped across the country. Also, view Food Banks Canada’s media release and the recent CTV feature for additional insights and commentary.
