Canadian food retailer Loblaw Companies has launched a holiday food drive that will collect non-perishable food items and cash donations at its Barrie stores to be given to the Barrie Food Bank.
People can donate to Loblaws, Real Canadian Superstores, Zehrs and No Frills shops in Barrie until Dec. 24.
“This has been ongoing for a number of years now,” Peter Sundborg, the Barrie Food Bank’s executive director, told Global News.
“We’re very appreciative of the generosity that comes from this campaign.”
According to Sundborg, the Barrie Food Bank has close to 32,000 visits per year, with 2,800 people coming through the door every month.
All of those people live within Barrie, Innisfil, part of Springwater and Oro-Medonte, he added.
“Our mission is to provide food to those who are in need, families and individuals who are in need in our communities, but the second part of our initiative is to help people to get onto that road of self-efficiency,” Sundborg said.
Ryan Nelson, the manager of the Essa Road Zehrs, said bags are built in store to make it easy for customers to donate to the Barrie Food Bank.
“Bags are located right at the the till for everyone to see, and they can choose to do their part right at the till and really just help out in a very easy way,” he said.
“A little bit goes a long way. There’s a lot of items in our store that some people take for granted, like a can of tuna, baby wipes or diapers that mean the world to other people.”