Low Household Income Means High Per Capita Demand

Description

Subject to the assumptions described below, the finding is that the wards with a larger number of low income (10-15k) households have a higher per capita demand for food from the Ottawa Food Bank.

What is the relationship between income and demand?

Note the numbers represent the wards, and for this plot the data is from 2014.

Comments

• Using cases as a measure of demand is problematic, as (for example), a case of peanut butter likely does not have the same cost, nor value to the recipient as a case of popcorn.
  
• As an overall measure of the level of demand each month it is reasonable.
  
• Should a dollar figure for each food item be made available, the analysis could be redone on a dollar basis.