Child Hunger
Hunger Lives in Your Neighbourhood
In every corner of BC, there are hungry children who don’t know where their next meal is coming from. For those who depend on school meal programs throughout the week, each weekend brings stress, fear, and empty cupboards.
Families Across BC are in Crisis
The ever-increasing cost of rent, household expenses and childcare has created an affordability emergency, and it has hit children the hardest. More than one in four children are at risk of food insecurity. For parents depending on school meal programs to help feed their children, every weekend brings renewed stress and anxiety.
BC’s child poverty rate from 2022 sits at 16.7% of children, continuing an alarming upward trend. Children on 61 First Nations reserves show even greater hardship, with a child poverty rate of 34.8%, and an even higher rate of 42.2% for the children in the rural reserves.
Lone-parent households, disproportionately led by women, struggle with a child poverty rate of 45.5%, nearly five times the rate of children in couple families. While only 19% of BC children lived in lone-parent families in 2022, these households represented more than half of all children in poverty. Access to affordable childcare has been shown to reduce poverty, yet access remains limited, leaving many parents, especially single mothers, with limited options.
High child poverty rates, combined with inflation in the cost of food and other essential expenses, is leaving many low-income families struggling to meet the nutritional needs of their children. In 2022, the rate of food insecurity among BC’s children (0-17) increased sharply to 29% from 22% in 2021. This represents an alarming 254,000 BC children living in food insecure households in 2022.
The food insecurity rate for lone-parent families was even higher at 44%. The number of food bank visits in BC increased by 20% between 2022 and 2023. There were 62,481 visits by children in BC to food banks in 2023, with children making up 31% of BC food bank clients in that year.
There are Hungry Kids in Your Community
Every BC community – even the ones you’d least expect – has children who are hungry. And in some neighborhoods, the situation is far more dire than others.
These 13 areas have neighborhoods with the highest poverty levels in BC. Backpack Buddies is stepping into help: our program is now offered in 10 of these areas and we are extending our support to more kids each year.
Backpack Buddies Operates Here
- Central Saanich
- Chilliwack
- Metchosin
- Nanaimo
- North Shore
- Northern Vancouver Island
- Prince George
- Richmond
- Vancouver
- Victoria
Not Yet Operating
- Central Coast
- Kamloops
- Kelowna
The Weekend Hunger Gap
Hunger Doesn’t take the weekend off
Children in food-insecure households often do not eat properly, or at all, on weekends. Consistent hunger, even just over the weekend, can set a child back for life. Children from food insecure households…
- Are two to four times more likely to have poorer health or a diagnosed chronic condition as they face long-term health challenges.
- Exhibit higher rates of behavioural problems and psychosocial deficits, and higher levels of anxiety and depression.
- Experience developmental impairments in areas of language and motor skills and are more likely to repeat a grade.
- Are more likely to be overweight due to poor diet and overeating due to the unpredictability of food.
We Feed BC’s Most Vulnerable Kids Every Weekend
Every Friday, we ensure that hungry kids across BC have meals and snacks to last the weekend.
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“The first school the kids were at didn’t offer a school lunch and it was a very difficult year of financial stress…sometimes my husband and I didn’t eat so the kids could.”
Lauren
Parent
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“The bags of food from Backpack Buddies provide us with a sense of security and hope. My daughter knows that there’s going to be something for her to eat over the weekend—she doesn’t have to worry about that anymore.”
Kristy
Parent
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“I just want him to be happy, and knowing that he won’t go hungry makes a huge difference. I used to tell him that he’d never go hungry—that I’d always find a way to feed him. And now, Backpack Buddies helps me keep that promise.”
Allice
Parent
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“It helped beyond belief because the food from Backpack Buddies was a way to make sure the kids always had what they needed when we might not have been able to give it to them.”
Jaimie-Lea
Sunshine Coast
When Kids Eat, They Can Thrive
Kids need food to grow, learn and thrive. Regular access to nutritious food sets children up for success at home—at school and in life.
Meet Francis
For the past few years, Francis has been scared to open her fridge. Struggling to make ends meet, the single-mom of 4-year-old Elizabeth was never sure if there would be enough for her daughter to eat. Then she was connected to Backpack Buddies – a constant the family came to depend on in a season of uncertainty.
“Not being able to feed your child is one of the worst feelings in the world. When she is hungry and there is nothing in the cupboards…when I don’t have any money to go shopping…It’s the worst. The consistency of the food every week from Backpack Buddies is a godsend. ”
Make a Difference Today
Feed Hungry Kids
Join us as a donor. Pack bags as a volunteer. Get your company connected. Whatever you do, when you get involved with Backpack Buddies, you will be putting hope back on the table for hungry kids across BC.
Get Involved
There are lots of ways to get involved with Backpack Buddies. Join us and explore how you can make a difference in the lives of hungry kids in your own community and across BC.
Get StartedDonate to Backpack Buddies
Give today and provide hungry kids with meals and snacks for the weekend.
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