Greater Vancouver Food Bank going strong during pandemic

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Despite all the changes they had to make during the pandemic, the Greater Vancouver Food Bank is in a position to help even more people than before. And it’s thanks to generous donations that have continued to come in.

Cynthia Boulter, the Food Bank’s Chief Operating Officer says, “We had to make so many changes to the way we distribute food and where we distribute food as a result of the pandemic.”

She says the Food Bank has always been on top of health and safety protocols throughout the pandemic.

But one thing they noticed was the increase in generosity from donors. Boulter says it’s because of that, they’re now distributing upwards of 200,000 lbs of nutritious food each month compared to last year. She says for a single person, “we are averaging about 30 lbs of food a week. And that is 10 to15 items.”

And long gone are the days where a jar of peanut butter or a can of tuna would be the main source of protein in a food box. Boulter says, “We’re able to purchase more, slightly more costly, non-perishable items because of the money that we have received from our donors.”

That means salmon, chicken, red meat and pork.

For the fist time, the Food Bank has been given federal funding, which Boulter says made it possible for them to help people during the pandemic who didn’t want to travel far from home.

“We created a program where we purchased industrial-sized fridges and freezers for any community agency organization who is interested in, and in a position to, put on a bit of a food bank themselves each week.”

The food bank is also expanding its baby program and a brand new seniors program will soon be launching providing easy to eat and easy to prepare food.

Donations are always welcome.