The 19th annual London Cares Curb Hunger Food Drive started off with a determined feel behind the London Food Bank.
Volunteers and city officials attended the kickoff event, including Mayor Matt Brown who stated, we need to address London’s hunger problem.
And that is exactly what is happening with this drive. On average the food drive collects between 50,000 to 70,000 pounds of non-perishable food.
Jay Stanford the Director of Environment, Fleet & Solid Waste was the leader at the opening saying, he wants to make sure that everyone is well aware of how easy it is to donate.
There are 27 grocery stores accepting donations, as well as over 45 Tim Hortons locations. If donations can’t be made at these places, they can be made by putting non-perishables in a bag with a yellow ribbon attached, set at your curb with your blue-bin, where volunteer drivers will pick it up.
The need for food donations has grown over 40 per cent in the last five years. In 2014, about 3,500 families visited the Food Bank every month.
Brown says, “These types of events are incredibly important,” adding, “The city plays a key role, bringing all partners together. Working in partnership with the Food Bank, our media partners, who are doing an incredible job helping to spread the word across the community. And also the private sector and non-for-profits as well. We need to come together and address this.”
The drive runs from June 5th to June 13th.
