Make a Difference for Canadians in Need and the Environment this Earth Day

Support food banks by donating used cellular devices to Food Banks Canada's Phones for Food program

TORONTO, April 19, 2011 /Canada NewsWire/ - Helping Canadians in need while also helping the environment is as simple as donating your no longer used cell phone or mobile device. Food Banks Canada's Phones for Food program is an easy way for individuals and businesses to support food banks while also doing something good by recycling — on Earth Day and everyday!

Phones for Food is an award winning recycling program that provides funds to the food bank community across the country while redirecting consumer waste that would otherwise be directed to a landfill. Since its launch in 2003, the Phones for Food program has generated over $750,000 for Food Banks Canada and the food bank community and diverted approximately 500,000 wireless devices from landfills. In 2010, Food Banks Canada was the recipient of Canadian Wireless Technology "Connected to Community" award for the Phones for Food program.

"This program is unique in that it provides much needed funds to support Food Banks Canada and the food bank community while also collectively reducing our environmental impact, making it a win-win situation," says Katharine Schmidt, Executive Director, Food Banks Canada. "We are grateful for the support of Canadians who have made the effort to recycle their mobile devices and made this program a continual success."

The Phones for Food program is supported by Rogers Communications and Purolator Inc., who have been sponsors since the program launched.

Global Electric Electronic Processing Inc. (GEEP) has recently been designated the phone recycling supplier for the Phones for Food program. GEEP, a Canadian Company, is a leader in the Electronic Recycling Industry and works to divert electric and electronic waste from landfills.

Participating in the program is as simple as one, two, three:

...Individuals or businesses can drop off their used cellular devices at any Rogers or Fido branded store across Canada or mail their old cell phone in to the program via the envelope provided with the purchase of a new cell phone.

...Phones are processed by GEEP, a phone recycling supplier.

...Funds generated as a result of phone collections are donated to Food Banks Canada and the food bank community.

Make Earth Day your environmental call to action and donate all used mobile phones and handheld devices to the program.

About Phones for Food

Phones for Food is an award winning handheld collection and recycling program sponsored by Rogers Communications and Purolator Inc. which provides new resources for the alleviation of hunger. Since its launch in 2003, the Phones for Food program has generated over $750,000 for Food Banks Canada and the food bank community and diverted approximately 500,000 wireless devices from landfills. For more information on Phones for Food, visit www.phonesforfood.com.

About Food Banks Canada

Food Banks Canada is the national charitable organization representing the food bank community across Canada. Our members and their respective agencies serve approximately 85 per cent of people accessing emergency food programs nationwide. Our mission is to meet the short term need for food and find long-term solutions to reduce hunger. Visit www.foodbankscanada.ca for more information.

Weekday Vegetarian: Nourish

Photo: Lloyd Alter, of the ingredients in Nourish

from TreeHugger.com
by Kelly Rossiter, Toronto

When my husband and I were at the Brewer's Plate this week, amidst the fancy chefs with their enticing dishes of stuffed morels, and beef brochettes and the like, there was a familiar red and white logo which seemed slightly out of place. It was the Campbell's logo familiar from my childhood and the staff were ladling out a new product called Nourish.

This cross between a stew and a soup was developed here in Ontario, using a special oat grown exclusively in Manitoba which has twice the fibre, ten times the protein and eight times the iron of rice. It was developed with the idea of providing a complete nutritious meal to people who use food banks, as well as for disaster relief. It provides a balanced meal with vegetables, grains, meat or meat substitutes that can be eaten hot or cold without the need of water and it has a pop-up lid. I think it's quite important that they have a vegetarian version of this, and that's the one I tasted. I have to say, the flavour profile was completely recognizable to me as a Campbell product, but that's okay, obviously lots of people love that.

Campbell Canada donated the first 100,000 cans to Food Banks Canada for distribution, and according to Inside Toronto, 100% of the net profit will be reinvested into "further hunger relief initatives". Campbell Canada donates 1 million pounds of food a year to food banks and also supports community kitchens. Soon the public will be able to buy Nourish and donate it in in-store bins for food banks. I've read some snarky blog sites that wonder whether this is really a marketing ploy, but it seems to me that if I were of necessity a food bank user, I would much rather give my children a can of vegetarian Nourish, with real vegetables and grains, than a can of spaghetti that's all carbohydrates, which is what you often see in donation bins. I'd be thanking Campbell's rather than cynically condemning them.

I'm hoping that the well-heeled patrons of the Brewer's Plate took a moment away from their spectacular food and beer tastings to try Nourish, and when it becomes available will take the opportunity to donate it to people who need it, whether that is for food banks or for disaster relief.

More Information on Food Banks

Could You Live on a Food Bank Diet?
Gleaning for the Hungry
Feed the Hungry with Local Food

Food Banks Canada's HungerCount study reports highest level of food bank use on record

HungerCount 2010 provides unique, essential information on levels of food bank use in Canada, profiles people in need of food assistance

OTTAWA, November 16, 2010 /Canada NewsWire/ - The results of the HungerCount 2010 survey released today show food banks across Canada helped 867,948 separate individuals in March 2010, an increase of 9.2%, or more than 73,000 people, compared to March 2009. This is 28% higher than in 2008, and is the highest level of food bank use since 1997.

Of the 867,948 people helped in March this year, 80,150 - 9.2% of the total - stepped through the front door of a food bank for the first time. The survey also shows that food bank use grew in every province in 2010.

"This is a reality check. Food banks are seeing first hand that the recession is not over for a large number of Canadians," said Katharine Schmidt, Executive Director of Food Banks Canada, which coordinated the annual national study.

"We are hearing that it is really tough out there," Ms. Schmidt said. "Many people who lost their jobs during the recession have now exhausted their unemployment benefits, and are looking to self-employment or to temporary and part-time jobs for income. Others have been forced to fall back on social assistance. These options aren't paying the bills, and people are accessing food banks to fill the gap."

As in past years, the profile of those assisted by food banks is highly varied:
38% of those assisted by food banks are children and youth under 18 years old.

Half of assisted households are families with children.

17% of households that turn to food banks for help each month are living on income from current or recent employment.

7% of assisted households report a pension as their primary source of income.

"Coming to a food bank is not an easy decision for people," said Bill Hall, Executive Director of the Battlefords and District Food and Resource Centre, in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. "Unfortunately, there continues to be a need for help in our community, and we have expanded our efforts to meet that need - when the overall goal should be to address the causes of hunger more broadly, and to be able to reduce our services and even close our doors for good."

"Though the recession has made things worse, the causes of hunger and low income run much deeper than the recent economic crisis," said Ms. Schmidt. "The need for food banks is a result of our failure as a country to adequately address a number of social issues, including a changing job market, a lack of affordable housing and child care, and a social safety net that is ineffective."

The HungerCount provides recommendations on how the federal government can work to increase people's ability to be self sufficient. Food Banks Canada's recommendations include the following:

...Implement a national poverty prevention and reduction strategy, with measurable targets and timelines.

...Create a federal housing strategy to increase and monitor investment in affordable housing programs in Canada's cities, towns and rural areas.

...Maintain current levels of federal cash and tax transfers to provincial, territorial, and First Nations governments.

...Address the unacceptable rates of low income among our most vulnerable seniors - those who live alone, without other means of support.

About the HungerCount Survey

HungerCount was initiated in 1989 and is the only comprehensive national study of food banks and affiliated food programs in Canada. Since 1997, data for the study have been collected every March. The information provided by the survey is invaluable, forming the basis of many Food Banks Canada activities throughout the year. For a full copy of the HungerCount 2010 report and associated graphics, and for more information, please visit www.foodbankscanada.ca.

About Food Banks Canada

Food Banks Canada is the national charitable organization representing the food bank community across Canada. Our Members, Affiliate Member food banks, and their respective agencies serve approximately 85% of people accessing emergency food programs nationwide. Our mission is to meet the short-term need for food and find long-term solutions to reduce hunger.