One in four Windsor-Essex households can’t afford enough food, health unit warns

Windsor Essex County Health Unit (WECHU). (File)

Windsor Essex County Health Unit (WECHU) data shows food insecurity is surging in the region, with 24.1 per cent of households unable to afford adequate food.

Recent models compiled by the health unit’s Food and Nutrition department indicated that the monthly cost of groceries for a family of four in 2024 has soared to approximately $1,188.01 — with little room for that in a family’s budget after covering other bills.

For Karen Bellemore, a public health nutritionist with WECHU who has been tracking the steady rise in food insecurity for over a decade, the trend was not a surprise.

“For most families, it is a struggle to put food on the table,” she explained. “When you start getting into income streams that are minimum wage, Ontario Works, or ODSP, that becomes an even more significant challenge because those wage rates are not keeping up with the cost of living in our community.”

She stated the situation was only becoming more dire as the cost of living continued to outpace wages and financial assistance programs.

"Every year these numbers become larger, and that gap of what is left over at the end of the month is becoming smaller — and even in the negatives,” Bellemore said.

Bellemore noted that the growing financial pressures had forced families to make difficult choices, focusing less on the quality of food and more on simply finding enough to eat.

“Really the conversation now is about how we can support people to get nourishment,” Bellemore said, “and not be as concerned about what that nourishment is.”

Though food banks offer temporary relief, Bellemore warned that they are not a sustainable solution.

To tackle food insecurity at its root, she expressed a desire to see broader systemic changes — chief among them, a universal basic income (UBI).

"Adequate income is essential for individuals to make choices and nourish themselves in the best way they can,” Bellemore explained.

The WECHU board is expected to consider endorsing UBI when it met again in November, potentially sending a letter of support to government officials.