Food drives are often associated with holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, but there’s a year-round need for food-bank assistance, a situation that was evident during the pandemic. Now, rapid inflation, including food prices, may lead to increased demand.

In that climate, the Foodland store in Elmira recently turned over the proceeds of a donation drive that saw a total of $6,905 raised in support of the Woolwich Community Services’ food bank.

“The money we gather at the store, it goes directly into our local food bank, which is a nice program that we have,” said owner Greg McPhee, who took over the store February 27.

The fact that donations are kept local is key, he added.

“We’re noticing that as a company, so it’s getting more directed straight into the community that the store belongs to, which is amazing because that wasn’t the way it was done in the past. Every dollar raised is given to the local food bank. And it’s an easier sell for our cashiers – they know that they are making a difference in their town,” he said.

The donation to the food bank also included six pallets of product that was not on the shelves. The local food bank, which is run by WCS, is in the midst of their spring food drive, however they receive community support year-round, said Lisa Martin.

“We live in an amazing community that continually supports us. Because there are still service clubs and schools that are all still open and running, there is lots of support,” Martin said.

“It’s fantastic because it buys the items that we need for our food bank for the recipients – we’re able to buy what we need,” said Martin of the donation from Foodland.

In particular, McPhee credits one cashier who was able to raise more than $1,000.

“She was part-time, so it was pretty interesting. Her sales tactic, whatever it was, worked really well,” he said.

“It’s a bit of an up-sell; it’s definitely from the consumers’ pockets. You’ve got to have it spun in such a way that it’s going to a good cause,” said McPhee.

He also pointed out that as food prices rise, a dollar is not going to go as far.

“So it’s nice that we got that much and our anticipation is to just year over year increase those numbers. That’s our incentive here to see what we can do,” he said.

According to the WCS website, one in five residents use the food bank each year. The website also lists the most needed items, including laundry detergent, apple juice, canned meat, canned fruit, canned fish, baking supplies, sidekicks, and peanut butter.

“Laundry detergent is a big one. It’s not really something that you think of first [when donating],” Martin said.

“We’re grateful for the community, and super grateful for the Foodland, the cashiers and the community for donating to that fundraiser that they had,” said Martin.

Rising costs, particularly rent, are directly related to increases in food bank use, according to a new report authored by Ron Kneebone and Margarita Wilkins of the School of Public Policy at The University of Calgary.

Examining monthly data from Daily Bread Food Bank, the authors tracked changes in the cost of shelter and in labour market conditions against food bank visits between January 2014-March 2020 – a period which saw a 53% increase in visits. The report finds that food bank visits directly rise with increases in rent, with falls in minimum wage and with reductions in the disability benefits available to individuals requiring social assistance.

Extrapolations from this research show the impact in a place the size of Toronto and Ontario: a $30 per month increase in rent would lead to 73,776 more visits to food banks annually in Toronto and 375,512 more visits across Ontario.