North Island-Powell River MP Rachel Blaney hit the road July 26 to see for herself the effort and impact of delivering surplus food to people in need in remote communities on northern Vancouver Island.
Blaney travelled with Loaves and Fishes driver Neil MacDougall, delivering essential food supplies to the Kyuquot, Gold River, and Tahsis food banks. Starting their day at 8:30 a.m. in Campbell River, the pair travelled in a large refrigerated truck, first making a critical stop at the Gold River dock to drop off provisions for Kyuquot. They then continued their mission by visiting the Gold River food bank and finally reaching their last delivery destination in Tahsis.
鈥淲hat Loaves and Fishes has done, which is remarkable, is they鈥檝e found a way to partner with many businesses and non-profits to redistribute food to communities that are often underserved,鈥� Blaney says. 鈥淭hey provide crucial food supplies to communities that might only be served by helicopter or by logging road, so they don鈥檛 often have access to a lot of resources. When times are tough, these communities are hit hard.鈥�
Beyond delivering food to the food banks, the journey also focused on collecting returned bottles and cans. At Tahsis, Moutcha Bay Resort and Strathcona Park, massive bags of donated empties were gathered to be taken back to Loaves and Fishes. These collected items will be returned for a refund, contributing to Loaves and Fishes funding.
鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible what Loaves and Fishes can do with the resources they have,鈥� Blaney says. 鈥淭hey can take every dollar from returning bottles and turn it into $5 of food, that鈥檚 their buying ability. That鈥檚 a lot of food for people who desperately need it鈥揳nd food that would otherwise be wasted.鈥�
Loaves and Fishes is a community food bank and recovery program that collects surplus foods from recovery partners, including the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Campbell River, and distributes it to those who need it. Among the many communities it serves are smaller and remote communities like Kyuquot, Gold River, and Tahsis.
鈥淚 met one woman in Tahsis who told me that if it wasn鈥檛 for this program with Loaves and Fishes, she didn鈥檛 know how she鈥檇 get enough food,鈥� Blaney says. 鈥淭he nearest large grocery store is in Campbell River, but her vehicle is broken down and too expensive to repair. She can鈥檛 get to Campbell River, so without Loaves and Fishes it would be hard to get the supplies she needs.鈥�
By the time Blaney returned to Campbell River at around 7:30 p.m., she and MacDougall had not only delivered a truckful of essential food supplies but also collected an equally impressive load of returned bottles and cans.
鈥淚t鈥檚 so wonderful to see that in these hard times, communities and people are coming together to create solutions, even when it鈥檚 incredibly difficult. In every community, there were volunteers who would pick up food and take it to people who couldn鈥檛 leave their homes. They鈥檙e taking care of each other, and that鈥檚 beautiful to see. Neil is truly amazing. He often does this run by himself, and it鈥檚 an incredible amount of work. From navigating the roads to dropping off food to sorting cans and bottles to ensure weight distribution, there鈥檚 a lot of effort and dedication that goes into ensuring food banks are stocked and essential funds are raised for Loaves and Fishes鈥� programs.鈥�
Since 2012, more than 21 million pounds of food has been diverted from landfills thanks to the efforts of the people at Loaves and Fishes. In a bid to meet increasing need throughout the region, Loaves and Fishes hopes to build a 25,000 square foot centralized food recovery and distribution warehouse to serve remote and urban Vancouver Island communities. They recently received a $7 million investment from the Government of BC. Additionally, the City of Nanaimo and the Regional District have contributed. While they applied for $7 million from the federal government, they now need $8 million due to inflation.
