Food Banks & Community Services Support

Once again this year, UFCW Locals 175 & 633 will donate $180,000 to food banks and community support organizations across Ontario.

(2023) President Tosato and Executive Assistant Chris Fuller present a cheque to Community Care St Catharines and Thorold

In September 2024, Feed Ontario released a report with sobering numbers that set another record: over 1 million people in the province visited a food bank over the last year.
There were 7.6 million total visits to Ontario’s food banks between April 2023 and March 2024, marking a 134% increase in visits over 2019-2020.¹

“Our Executive Board members know that our Local Union is in a position to provide this support and I continue to be proud of their commitment to the communities across this province where our members live and work,” said President Tosato. “We also recognize that the vital work these food charities and community groups are doing is only a temporary fix that cannot correct the systemic root causes of food insecurity.”

Executive Board members Andrew Anand and Byron Williams present a cheque to two representatives in red plaid pajamas from the food bank in OshawaStarting in 2020, the UFCW Locals 175 & 633 Executive Board has endorsed donations each year going to organizations throughout the province. Among the many services to their communities, the organizations supported with these donations provide: front-line food provision for families and individuals; hot meals for vulnerable community members; assisting with school nutrition programs, and; food distribution and support through other area agencies and charitable initiatives.

In the first year, the Local Union donated a total of $60,000 to 20 organizations. Since then, donations have increased to reach a total of $180,000 each year distributed amongst 60 vital community support centers and food banks in Ontario. Find photos from the 2024 donations, made by our members, Executive Board, and staff, on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

Sources: 1 Ontarians are drowning amid surging affordability crisis. Feed Ontario. (2024, September 12). https://feedontario.ca/news/ontarians-are-drowning-amid-surging-affordability-crisis/ 2 Statistics Canada, Canadian Income Survey, 2022 https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/240426/dq240426a-eng.htm