Monitoring Food Affordability
Public health units annually survey local grocery stores to monitor local grocery prices. Registered Dietitians then use the Ontario Nutritious Food Basket (ONFB) tool to calculate the average monthly cost to feed a family of four. In 2025, the Health Unit surveyed eleven grocery stores across Windsor and Essex County. The cost was $1,181.08.
This data informed the 2025 Monitoring Food Affordability in Windsor Essex information report. The report illustrates the impact of rising food prices on low-income households in our community. For example, a single mother with two children would only have $881.40 to cover all other monthly expenses, after paying for housing and food. A pregnant mother receiving Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) benefits would only have $238.71. In 2025, two more income scenarios were featured to highlight the unique financial pressures experienced by families with infant children.
Food Insecurity Screening Pilot
Food insecurity can have particularly devastating impacts on maternal and infant health. Accordingly, the Comprehensive Health Promotion department (CHP) initiated a maternal-infant specific food security strategy. As a foundational step, CHP partnered with the Healthy Families department to strengthen food insecurity screening and care planning for Healthy Babies Healthy Children (HBHC) clients experiencing food insecurity.
Following a 10-month pilot, HBHC incorporated a validated 2-item food insecurity screener, called Hunger Vital Signs. During the pilot, 72 families screened positive for food insecurity. All clients who screened positive received information about the new food insecurity program directory. These clients also have priority access to consultation for income optimization and infant feeding within the HBHC program. With these enhanced supports in place, HBHC is now well-positioned to accept referrals from community partners for food insecurity-related care.
Connected, Not Controlled Challenge
The Connected, Not Controlled Challenge (CNC) was a public service announcement (PSA) video contest for students in grades 6 to 12 across Windsor and Essex County. The purpose of the CNC Challenge was to engage students and provide them with an opportunity to use their voices to learn about and raise awareness on how the use of digital technology can affect youths’ well-being.
The challenge ran from April to May of 2025. A total of 64 video submissions were received from all four school boards: 39 for the elementary division (grades 6 to 8), and 25 for the secondary school division (grades 9 to 12). The submissions were from 133 students, representing 19 different schools in Windsor-Essex County. Prizes were awarded to students whose videos received the highest number of public votes, as well as to publicly funded schools with the highest participation rates. Over 2,100 votes determined the winning videos.