Two months after Londoners donated nearly 190,000 pounds of food and money for the spring food drive, the London Food Bank is once again praising local generosity amid the coronavirus pandemic following the recent completion of the annual London Cares Curb Hunger campaign.
The 24th edition of the campaign, done in partnership with the city, ran from June 3 to June 13 and collected more than 63,000 pounds worth of food, said Jane Roy, the food bank’s co-executive director, on Tuesday.
The tally includes physical food donations made at grocery stores across the city and at the food bank, as well as monetary donations that will be used to purchase food.
A $2.60 donation equals about one pound of food, according to Food Banks Canada.
“Of actual food, close to 40,000 pounds of food was actually donated, and almost $68,000 was donated,” Roy said. “So when you put those two things together, it was close to 63,500 pounds of food in total, which was amazing.”
By comparison, last year saw a total of 48,200 pounds of food collected.
All of the donations collected will go to help the more than 3,000 families a month who access the food bank, as well as the more than 20 agencies and programs the food bank assists.
As a result of the novel coronavirus, this year’s edition of the campaign was more virtual, and unlike previous years, residents weren’t able to drop off donations at fire halls.
The ‘curb’ portion, where donations are left curbside, was also phased out, but not due to the pandemic, according to the city.
“Due the gradual decline in the use of the curbside portion, this option was not going to be used in 2020,” reads the city’s website.
“It has been moving more and more away from that,” Roy said. “But even more than that, this drive more and more has been focusing on fresh food. So that’s what this drive, this time, was all about.”
An example of that focus has been the continuation of the food bank’s Plant a Row, Grow a Row initiative that allows local gardeners to sign up and grow an extra row of produce for donation.
It comes as many Londoners, stuck at home due to the pandemic, have been dabbling in gardening as a way to keep busy or pass the time.
But reminding Londoners of the importance of donating fresh items and produce is just one aspect of the campaign, Roy says.
“The other thing is reminding folks that poverty doesn’t take a summer holiday… It’s that folks who are struggling, they struggle throughout the whole course of the year. So this drive really is important for that,” she said.
While the need at the food bank right now has gone down, the numbers are expected rise again in the fall after the government’s pandemic assistance programs have wound down. By how much remains an open question.
“We know they’ll go up, but we’re not sure how far they’ll go,” Roy said.
The London Cares Curb Hunger campaign was initially created to help keep the food bank’s shelves stocked during the summer months when there is a lull in food-collecting campaigns.
Roy says the amount collected during this year’s Curb campaign should help the Food Bank through the fall.
“Every time we say ‘this is the need, this is what’s out there,’ Londoners come through. So, again, we’re really thankful for all of that.”
— With files from Sawyer Bogdan
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