Dear Zachk:

 The most accurate statement of the number of grants given by foundations in the last tax year is through the Charities Directorate Website here: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/ebci/haip/srch/advancedsearch-eng.action

It does require a fair amount of research to get the information you are requesting, as you would need to look at every individual return.

Our database product  the Canadian Directory to Foundations online could also help answer this question - however, though we strive to keep it as updated as possible, we can only report on the last available tax returns from the CRA. The directory is great for any research on foundations and giving trends as you are able to do more refined searches by assets, grants, granting interests. 

To find out how to subscribe please visit Imagine Canada's page here http://www.imaginecanada.ca/?q=en/node/50

At this point in general the Directory reports that foundations in general issued over 1.5 Billion in grants.

To see the top 10 visit our page here:

http://library.imaginecanada.ca/tir_top_ten_foundations

Hope this helps!

Meg