339 Barton Street
Stoney Creek, ON L8E 2L2
CEO: Radhika Subramanyan
Board Chair: Joe Mercanti

Charitable Reg. #:13695 7958 RR0001

STAR RATING

Ci's Star Rating is calculated based on the following independent metrics:

[Charity Rating: 5/5]

✔+

FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

Audited financial statements for current and previous years available on the charity’s website.

A

RESULTS REPORTING

Grade based on the charity's public reporting of the work it does and the results it achieves.

Good

DEMONSTRATED IMPACT

The demonstrated impact per dollar Ci calculates from available program information.

NEED FOR FUNDING

Charity's cash and investments (funding reserves) relative to how much it spends on programs in most recent year.

88%

CENTS TO THE CAUSE

For a dollar donated, after overhead costs of fundraising and admin/management (excluding surplus) 88 cents are available for programs.



My anchor

OVERVIEW

About Hamilton Food Share:

Hamilton Food Share is a 5-star rated charity with an above-average results reporting grade of A. For every dollar donated, 88 cents are available to go towards the cause. Its reserve funds can cover just over seven months of annual program costs.

Founded in 1992, Greater Hamilton Food Share (Hamilton Food Share) is the distribution hub for Hamilton’s Emergency Food Network. The network consists of 16 member agencies, operating 23 emergency food programs that work to feed people in poverty. According to Hamilton Food Share’s 2024 Hunger Report, the charity reports that the number of people reaching out for hunger-relief support has increased by 42% since 2020. In fiscal 2024 (year ended March), approximately 959 people reached out to a food bank every day in Hamilton and 37% of all food bank visits were clients with children.

Hamilton Food Share runs one main program: Food Acquisition and Distribution. In F2024, Hamilton Food Share distributed 4,670,610 pounds of food to an average of 17,682 unique people per month. Of the food distributed, 60% was fresh, 30% non-perishable, and 10% frozen. In F2024 Hamilton Food Share also served 366,908 public meals. The charity also distributes menstrual products to the Emergency Food Network. In F2024, Hamilton Food Share distributed 27,576 menstrual products, a 40% increase from the 16,519 products distributed in F2023.

A Charity Intelligence 2024 Top 100 Rated Charity.

 

My anchor

Results and Impact

In F2024, Hamilton Food Share distributed 4,670,610 pounds of food to an average of 17,682 monthly clients. The average client received 22lb of food per month.

While Ci highlights these key results, they may not be a complete representation of Hamilton Food Share’s results and impact.

Charity Intelligence has given Hamilton Food Share a Good impact rating based on demonstrated impact per dollar spent.

Impact Rating: Good

My anchor

Finances

Hamilton Food Share’s audited financial statements follow activity-based costing, which is a best practice. This means it clearly disclosed which expenses relate to program, administrative, and fundraising activities.

In F2024, Hamilton Food Share received $3.2m in donations. It also received $16.7m in donated goods in kind (80% of total revenues) and $909k in government funding. Administrative costs are 2% of total revenues and fundraising costs are 11% of total cash donations. For every dollar donated, 88 cents are available to go towards the cause.

In F2024, Hamilton Food Share spent $3.0m on its programs, which is 71% of total revenues (excluding donated goods). In F2024, the charity had $1.9m in its reserve funds. These reserve funds can cover just over seven months of annual program costs.

Profile updated on June 24, 2025 by Abby Stout.

Financial Review


Financial Ratios

Fiscal year ending March
202420232022
Administrative costs as % of revenues 1.8%2.2%2.1%
Fundraising costs as % of donations 10.6%8.3%9.1%
Total overhead spending 12.4%10.5%11.2%
Program cost coverage (%) 62.9%77.4%41.8%

Summary Financial Statements

All figures in $000s
202420232022
Donations 3,1723,0132,960
Goods in kind 16,72112,55713,129
Government funding 909154217
Fees for service 26260
Lotteries (net) 000
Other income 154117184
Total revenues 20,98215,86816,490
Program costs 3,0182,2842,878
Grants 4947350
Donated goods exp 16,72112,55713,129
Administrative costs 386348342
Fundraising costs 335249270
Total spending 20,51015,48516,968
Cash flow from operations 472382(479)
Capital spending 25259272
Funding reserves 1,9311,8041,351

Note: DEFERRED CAPITAL CONTRIBUTIONS: Ci did not include amortization of deferred capital contributions, decreasing revenues by $93k in F2024, $102k in F2023, and $80k in F2022. Ci included capital contributions received, increasing other revenue by $107k in F2024, $11k in F2023, and $195k in F2022. It was included in other revenue because Ci could not separate between government and non-government received contributions. DEFERRED REVENUE: To report on a cash-basis, Ci adjusted for the change in deferred revenue, affecting total revenues by $24k in F2024, $50k in F2023, and ($60k) in F2022. Ci also adjusted for deferred revenue related to COVID-19 affecting total revenues by ($nil) in F2024, ($nil) in F2023, and ($933k) in F2022. DISPOSAL OF ASSETS: Ci did not include loss on disposal of assets in revenue, affecting revenue by ($9k) in F2024, ($11k) in F2023, and ($18k) in F2022. GOVERNMENT FUNDING: Ci backed out government funding from donations in accordance with the charity’s T3010 filings with the CRA and included it in government funding.

Salary Information

Full-time staff: 15

Avg. compensation: $69,989

Top 10 staff salary range:

$350k +
0
$300k - $350k
0
$250k - $300k
0
$200k - $250k
0
$160k - $200k
0
$120k - $160k
1
$80k - $120k
2
$40k - $80k
7
< $40k
0

Information from most recent CRA Charities Directorate filings for F2024

My anchor

Comments & Contact

Comments added by the Charity:

Learn more:

Hamilton Food Share 2024 Hunger Report

Hamilton Food Share 2024 Annual Report

Charity Contact

Website: www.hamiltonfoodshare.org
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Tel: 905-664-9065

Print  
Image

Charity Intelligence researches Canadian charities for donors to be informed and give intelligently. Our website posts free reports on more than 800 Canadian charities, as well as in-depth primers on philanthropic sectors like Canada’s environment, cancer, and homelessness. Today over 500,000 Canadians use our website as a go-to source for information on Canadian charities reading over 1.6 million charity reports. Through rigorous and independent research, Charity Intelligence aims to assist Canada’s dynamic charitable sector in being more transparent, accountable and focused on results.

 

Be Informed. Give Intelligently. Have Impact

 

Charitable Registration Number: 80340 7956 RR0001