Commentary
This page features commentary by PROOF investigators and staff, including blog posts on the PROOF site and contributions to other outlets. These pieces bring together research findings to provide perspective on different issues around addressing household food insecurity.
2024
National school food program won’t solve food insecurity for families. Here’s what can.
By Tim Li and Valerie Tarasuk, published in Policy Options, May 7, 2024.
2023
Food insecurity in Canada is the worst it’s ever been — here’s how we can solve it
By Valerie Tarasuk and Tim Li, published in The Conversation, November 19, 2023
Canada Child Benefit’s Seventh Year: Reflecting on its unrealized potential to reduce food insecurity
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, July 21, 2023
Tackling household food insecurity to protect the mental health of children and youth in Canada
By Lynn McIntyre, published in CMAJ, July 24, 2023
Canada’s national food policy is at risk of enshrining a two-tiered food system
By Valerie Tarasuk and Tim Li, published in The Conversation, June 5, 2023
Food prescriptions – a short-sighted response to food insecurity
By Tim Li, published in Healthy Debate, May 24, 2023
Federal budget 2023: Grocery rebate is the right direction on food insecurity, but there’s a long road ahead
By Valerie Tarasuk and Tim Li, published in The Conversation, March 29, 2023
2022
Moment of reckoning for household food insecurity monitoring in Canada
By Valerie Tarasuk, Andrée-Anne Fafard St-Germain, and Timmie Li, published in Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada, October 12, 2022
Reconsidering Food Prescription Programs in Relation to Household Food Insecurity
By Valerie Tarasuk and Lynn McIntyre, published in The Journal of Nutrition, September, 13 2022
Persistently high rates of food insecurity demand policy action on inadequate income
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, August 16, 2022
What does record inflation mean for household food insecurity in Canada?
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, March 16, 2022
2021
A decade of proof on how to tackle food insecurity in Canada
By Tim Li, published in The Hill Times, December 28, 2021
A look back at 10 years of PROOF
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, December 28, 2021
Food drives are not the answer to poverty and hunger
By Elaine Power, Paul Taylor, and Valerie Tarasuk, published in Toronto Star, December 5, 2021
To eliminate food insecurity, we must dismantle anti-Black racism
By Tim Li, published in Healthy Debate, October 26, 2021
P.E.I. made history by setting a timeline for eliminating food insecurity: Here’s how they can achieve it.
By Jennifer Taylor, Tim Li, and Valerie Tarasuk, published in The Guardian (P.E.I)/Saltwire Network, June 17, 2021
Prince Edward Island: The first jurisdiction to set explicit targets for reducing food insecurity
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, April 21, 2021
2020
Food banks can’t adequately address COVID-19 food insecurity
By Valerie Tarasuk and Lynn McIntyre, published in Policy Options, April 28, 2020
More Canadians are Food Insecure Than Ever Before – And the Problem is Only Getting Worse
By Valerie Tarasuk, published in Homeless Hub, March 11, 2020
2018
Basic income: A no-brainer in economic hard times
By Catherine Mah, published in The Conversation, August 2, 2018
The case for more comprehensive data on household food insecurity
By Valerie Tarasuk, Timmie Li, Andrew Mitchell, and Naomi Dachner, published in Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada, May 16, 2018
2017
Food waste and food insecurity in Canada
By Naomi Dachner and Valerie Tarasuk, published in Policy Options, October 23, 2017
Provinces and Territories Opting Out of Measuring Household Food Insecurity
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, May 25, 2017
2016
Monitoring Food Insecurity around the World and in Canada
By Tim Li, published in PROOF blog, June 10, 2016
Food insecurity remains a persistent national public health problem
By Naomi Dachner, published in Homeless Hub, April 5, 2016
Food bank stats don’t tell the story of food insecurity
By Tim Li, published in Think Upstream, March 3, 2016
Political Talk about Food Insecurity in Canada
By Laura Anderson, published in University of Toronto Press, February 24, 2016
Five things about food insecurity in Canada
By Carolyn Shimmin and Valerie Tarasuk, published in Policy Options, January 7, 2016
2015
Donating ‘edible waste’ to food banks in exchange for tax credit? Now that’s a rubbish idea
By Valerie Tarasuk, published in The Globe and Mail, November 2, 2015
2014
It is time that all Canadians have access to adequate food!
By Naomi Dachner, published in Homeless Hub, February 6, 2014
2013
Fitting time to reflect on hunger in Canada
By Naomi Dachner, published in Homeless Hub, October 15, 2013
Food insecurity indicator of poor progress on poverty
By Rachel Loopstra, published in Canada without Poverty, August 6, 2013
Food insecurity hits home for many Canadian households
By Naomi Dachner, published in Homeless Hub, July 25, 2013