Food Bank Visits in Ottawa

Food bank use has surged in recent years due to the rising cost of living and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. How much has food bank use changed, and which neighbourhoods are seeing the greatest increases in food bank use? The following dashboard lets you explore food bank use in neighbourhoods served by the Ottawa Food Bank network.

Note that the Ottawa Food Bank network does not currently cover the entire city of Ottawa. For example, Kanata, Stittsville, Barrhaven, and rural neighbourhoods in the south and west are not included. Also note that some neighbourhoods have small populations and low numbers of food bank visitors (e.g., Airport, Greenbelt East, Rockcliffe Park), and thus will show significant percent changes in food bank use even when the number of food bank users remain small.

Food bank visits are weighted by household size. For example, if one visit is for a household of one person, it is counted once. If one visit is for a household of four people, it is counted four times, as the food received in that visit is serving four people.

How does food bank use in neighbourhoods align with city wards? The following static PDF maps show food bank use by neighbourhood between 2018 (Q2-Q4) and 2023 (Q1), with an overlay of city wards to better understand the geographic context.