Food Bank Donations 2024

As food insecurity and food bank use continues to rise across the province, the UFCW Locals 175 & 633, on behalf of its 70,000 members, will once again donate nearly $200,000 to food banks and charitable organizations across the province this holiday season.

Through November and December, UFCW Locals 175 & 633 Members, Executive Board, and staff, have been presenting cheques for $3,000 to various organizations across Ontario. In total, 60 food banks and community services groups will be receiving donations for a total of $180,000.

“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 Kelly Tosato, President of UFCW Local 175. “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.”

“It is heartbreaking to see our policy makers and lobbyists with deep corporate pockets consistently value obscene profit at the expense of a growing number of people and families experiencing food insecurity,” said Tosato.

Food Banks Canada HungerCount 2024 noted that in March 2024, more than 2 million visits were recorded to the nation’s food banks, marking the highest number in history for these visits.

In September 2024, Feed Ontario released a report with sobering numbers that set another record: over 1 million people in Ontario visited a food bank over the last year. With 7.6 million visits to Ontario’s food banks between April 2023 and March 2024: that marks a 134% increase in visits over 2019-2020.

“Real change must be implemented through government policies to make sure that not one person, not one family, in this province is left behind,” added Tosato.

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.

Thank you to all of the wonderful organizations that work hard to ensure members of their communities can access food, shelter, and other services when they need it most.

Find more photos from this year’s donations on our Facebook and Instagram!

The Local Union began making its annual donations to Food Banks during the 2020 holiday season. That year saw a total of $60,000 go to 20 organizations across the province. In 2023, the Local Union Executive Board endorsed increasing the donation amount – to $180,000 – in order to provide assistance to more food banks and community services throughout a larger number of communities.

Statistical sources: Ontarians are drowning amid surging affordability crisis. Feed Ontario. (2024, September 12). https://feedontario.ca/news/ontarians-are-drowning-amid-surging-affordability-crisis/ — Hungercount 2024. Food Banks Canada. (2024, October 28). https://foodbankscanada.ca/hungercount/