Nearly one in three Canadians have skipped meals or reduced portion sizes because they could not afford groceries, according to a new Salvation Army report that notes food insecurity has reached a four-year high.
The Salvation Army’s annual Canadian Poverty and Socioeconomic Analysis, released Nov. 3, found that 31 percent of Canadians had skipped meals or reduced meal sizes because of grocery costs, up from 27 percent in 2025.
Meanwhile, the proportion of Canadians accessing community food supports, including food banks and community kitchens, rose to 15 percent from 11 percent the previous year.
Both measures reached their highest levels in the four years covered by the study. The proportion of Canadians skipping or reducing meals had declined from 29 percent in 2023 to 28 percent in 2024 and 27 percent in 2025. Use of community food supports also fell from 13 percent in 2023 to 12 percent in 2024 and 11 percent in 2025 before rising this year.
Younger Canadians were particularly affected. The report found that 41 percent of respondents aged 18 to 34 had skipped meals or reduced portion sizes because they could not afford groceries, compared with 31 percent nationally.
“For many families, making ends meet is no longer about cutting back on extras,” said Glenn van Gulik, national spokesperson for The Salvation Army, in a press release. “It’s about making difficult choices between food, housing and other basic necessities.”
Nearly one-quarter of younger respondents (23 percent) had accessed community food supports, up from 15 percent in 2025. By comparison, 16 percent of Canadians aged 35 to 54 and 8 per ent of those aged 55 and older had used such services.
Financial pressures were also more pronounced among younger Canadians. More than three-quarters of respondents aged 18 to 34 said they had difficulty managing limited financial resources. The report also found that 41 percent of younger respondents said they would be unable to cover additional expenses beyond two weeks.
Meanwhile, Statistics Canada’s September consumer price index data showed that grocery prices rose 1.7 percent year over year, down from a 2.8 percent increase in August. Despite the slower rate of growth, grocery prices remained 33 percent higher than in September 2020.
Food affordability has also emerged as one of Canadians’ top three national concerns, according to the Salvation Army report. The proportion identifying it as a major concern rose 11 percentage points to 37 percent in 2026, up from 26 percent in 2025. It surpassed homelessness and housing insecurity in the survey’s rankings.
Canadians also expressed concern about the economic effects of U.S. tariffs. Nearly nine in 10 respondents, or 89 percent, said they were concerned tariffs would increase the cost of everyday goods, while 60 percent said their households had felt a financial impact from the trade situation.
The report also found that housing affordability remains a significant concern. Nearly half of respondents said they were not confident they could find another home in their community if they had to move because of housing costs. Almost half said they could not afford the upfront expenses associated with moving, such as deposits and moving costs.
Nearly one-quarter of respondents said their households spent at least half of their after-tax income on housing.
The study was conducted from Sept. 11 to 18, 2026, among 1,525 Canadians who are members of the Angus Reid Forum. The online sample was balanced and weighted by age, gender and region. As it was a non-probability sample, a conventional margin of error cannot be calculated.
