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Demand on Red Deer Food Bank grew 10 per cent in 2024

Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser is fast approaching
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The Mustard Seed and the Red Deer Food Bank are hosting the Coldest Night of the Year walk on Feb. 22, 2025. (File photo by Advocate staff)

Red Deer Food Bank saw a 10 per cent increase in people who needed help to put food on their tables in 2024. 

Executive director Mitch Thomson said last year 30,563 people were fed through the food bank's emergency hamper program, compared to 27,700 in 2023.

Demand has doubled in the last five years. A total of 12,323 hampers were distributed in 2024 compared to 6,046 in 2020 compared; the number of children served climbed to 11,983 from 5,583; adults served grew to 18,396 from 8,672. 

He said fewer donation dollars also came in last year, particularly during the Christmas season during the Canada Post strike. 

Now there's the threat of tariffs by the United States, and retaliatory tariffs by Canada. 

On Saturday, Trump signed executive orders that laid out a plan to hit Canada with 25 per cent tariffs, with a lower 10 per cent levy on Canadian energy.

Thomson said alarm bells are ringing for food banks.

"We're nervous and worried about those impacts. They're talking about greater unemployment and fewer things being available on Canadian shelves and at higher prices," Thomson said. 

"All of these things will create pressure on Canadians, and more so on lower-income Canadians and people who are on a fixed means, so we are expecting to see pressures on the food bank. If the average donor is spending more to look after their own family, then that impacts our donations as well."

He said the food bank relies on food donations from businesses that would be hit hard by a tariff war, but now that the food bank is growing its own food the charity has more resilience than in the past.

"We're in a fortunate space where with the food production systems we started are now starting to produce results. We are now starting producing 400 to 600 heads of lettuce a week in our hydroponic sea can. We got our first tomato off the vine here last week so we're starting to harvest."

This month Red Deer Food Bank, in partnership with The Mustard Seed, are hosting the Coldest Night of the Year fundraiser on Feb. 22. 

"We're looking at this fundraiser as an opportunity to help continue to build momentum moving forward in the year. We know with the pressures we felt last year, it's important to keep our efforts up," Thomson said. 

"We're definitely putting our best foot forward to do that."

For more information cnoy.org/location/reddeer

— with files from The Canadian Press



Susan Zielinski

About the Author: Susan Zielinski

Susan has been with the Red Deer Advocate since 2001. Her reporting has focused on education, social and health issues.
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