Leo Toronto has introduced a new diet. Yes, that statement got your attention. New diets do that.

The CDB diet is actually what people can eat each day if they have to survive on the Canadian Disability Benefit (CDB).

“The Canada Disability Benefit was created to ensure that every Canadian who relies on disability benefits should not have to rely on a food bank to survive. The $200 benefit per month simply isn’t enough,” stated Neil Hetherington, CEO of Daily Bread Food Bank. “That’s why we wanted to launch a bold, disruptive awareness campaign to highlight this gap and call for a stronger benefit that can truly reduce food insecurity and move people living with disabilities from poverty to a situation of hope.”

The campaign was created by Leo Toronto and Leo Design, in partnership with Daily Bread (Toronto-based charity that works to eliminate food insecurity and end poverty) and fitness, food, and lifestyle influencers, to expose the harsh reality of what the CDB currently provides, just $6.67 a day. The faux wellness trend, the CDB Diet revealed the impossibility of living on such a limited amount.

The CDB Diet was supported by a fake CDB brand with its own social presence, OOH advertising, and website. This drove to FundTheBenefit.ca/cdb-diet, where visitors could sign a petition calling for the Canada Disability Benefit to be increased. The campaign’s key influencers included those focused health, fitness, and lived-experience, such as Reese Ketler, Hope Fitness and KailaWenn. The campaign ignited national outrage, sparking conversations that reached the halls of government.

Awareness was just a start. Leo took the message directly to MPs with targeted OOH outside Parliament Hill, calling on them to vote in favour of raising the benefit. Leo also sent them boxes of the food you could afford on $6.67 a day, the exact amount the CDB provides. The campaign sparked conversation on the floor of Parliament, ultimately contributing to the introduction of measures to reduce barriers to accessing the CDB and confirmation to exempt CDB from clawbacks.

“To make real change, we knew a standard awareness campaign or asking people to sign yet another petition wouldn’t cut it,” stated Kohl Forsberg, executive creative director at Leo. “Canadians are inundated with issues every day, so we had to meet them where they already were and capture their attention in a way that felt immediate and undeniable. In a year crowded with competing national priorities, seeing the government take meaningful action is extraordinary. It shows that when Canadians speak up, change is possible.”

Credits:
Client: Daily Bread Food Bank
Chief Executive Officer: Neil Hetherington
Vice Presidents: Joanna Dwyer & Rose Butler
Communications Manager: Giao Chau

Creative Agencies: Leo Design & Leo Toronto
Chief Creative Officer: Angus Tucker
Executive Creative Director: Kohl Forsberg
Head of Designs: Matthew Boyd & Anchie Contractor
Creative Director & Art Directo: Tyler McKissick

Associate Creative Director & Copywriter: Appanna Chetranda
Art Director: Francin Cruz
Copywriter: Kohl Forsberg
Design Director: Marcelo Hong
Designer: Donna Liu
Chief Strategy Officer: Tahir Ahmad
Strategy Director: Ryan Roberts
Strategist: Alex Singleton President: Ben Tarr
Vice President: Kim Le
Account Team: Krzysztof Iwanicki, Simon Fernandes, Tien Truong, Andrea Trias & Yasmin Ansari

Production: The Pub Productions & LePub
Head of Production: Gord Cathmoir
Executive Producer: Janice Rebelo
Producers: Marisa Debartolo & Carly Price
Post Producer: Julie Neff
Editors: Peter Guzda & Jeff Poremba
Studio Manager: Kevin Stephen
Project Managers: Thomas Degez & Dalise Torres
Digital Producer: David Freedman
Sound Engineers: Gabriel Rondeau & Marc-Andre Charbonneau
Sound Producer: Elyse Brunette