In two months, the Wood Buffalo Food Bank has given out more hampers then it did in all of 2015.
“For both June, and July, so post fire until the end of July we’ve given out 4,915 hampers,” said executive director Arianna Johnson. “It’s about a thousand more than we gave out last year.”
As families in Fort McMurray work to get back on their feet, many are forced to turn to the food bank, which is giving out 150 hampers daily.
Executive director Arianna Johnson says the food bank is giving out 150 food hampers per day.
Johnson said the vast majority of families, almost 95 per cent, that have used the food bank since returning to the city after the evacuation, had never used it before.
Most have only come to the bank once since June 11.
The food bank has shifted its focus from monthly hampers which contain primarily non-perishable items to weekly which contain more fresh food.
It’s been a rough road for the food bank. It was forced to destroy 80 per cent of their food stocks once they were allowed back into their building after the fire, but sister food banks around the province and helped them re-stock the shelves.
Now they’re feeling the pinch again, and hoping for support.
“We’re really looking for monetary donations to assist us in purchasing things as we run out of them, as well as helping us purchase those perishable goods, because they are an important part of a well balanced diet for our clients.
Johnson says if you do have food to donate, their most popular items are canned meats, dried goods, and canned vegetables and fruits.