Courtesy The National Post

Food banks in Toronto reported a record-breaking 3.48 million visitors between April 1, 2023, and March 31, 2024.

As it has annually since the pandemic, the number of people visiting Toronto food banks for the first time soared again over the last year, and newcomers to Canada are among the largest cohort of new users.

This is an astonishing 222 per cent increase in new food bank clients compared to just two years ago,” the report reads, noting that the figures are an underestimate as they don’t include data from anonymous visits.

Overall, the facilities had a record-breaking 3.48 million visitors over the year, one million more than the previous and almost four times as many recorded before COVID-19.

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The report notes it took 38 years to surpass the one-million visit mark, two years to pass the two-million and just a year to hit three million.

Based on our projections and the worsening level of poverty in our communities, we expect to exceed four million visits by this time next year.”