As a staff member at the Campus Food Bank, I look forward to meeting new clients and welcoming them to our service. I always try to break the ice during client registrations by saying that “our hampers should help reduce your grocery bill.” While reasons to use the food bank vary widely from person to person for using our service, my little comment gets a smile from nearly everyone. Food costs are something that I can relate to clients about, especially since I was also a student balancing textbook costs and figuring out my grocery budget not too long ago.
At the CFB, we recognize that school can be expensive, so we aim to reduce the financial stress for members of our campus community. Food banking culture across Canada is also shifting towards more skill-building and community-based programming, in order to provide clients a more expanded service beyond standard food hampers. With that idea in mind, the Campus Food Bank is running several new pilot projects this semester. We are hosting monthly cooking classes and grocery buses that allow students to socialize, build their recipe repertoire and have easier access to groceries. Our goals with these new programs are to round out the food-related programs that we host and connect further to our campus community.
In addition to these other programs, our office has become a depot for the WECAN Food Basket Society. This Edmonton area non-profit organization bulk-purchases meat, fruits and vegetables, which are then sold to individuals at a lower cost than most grocery stores. Participants pay a small yearly membership fee, along with payments of $10 per produce order and $15 per meat order. The only available restriction that the program can accomodate is no pork (however there are some depots in Edmonton with halal meat options) and the food items vary each month. Picking up a WECAN basket amounts to buying yourself a surprise present, because it could be a new variety of produce and meat each month. The program also gives out suggested recipes to go with the items, so members have a starting place to get ideas for meals from their basket.
The Campus Food Bank’s first month of this program was quite successful, with 66 new members signing up to receive baskets. The WECAN program is open to all campus community members, not just our clients, and we hope to see even more participants throughout the term. Even Campus Food Bank volunteers and staff, myself included, are signing up to get a basket this month. My hope is that this program will continue to be a success on campus and further reduce grocery costs for university community members.
Orders for October’s WECAN baskets are open until October 5th at 6pm. We accept cash only and further details can be found on the website of the Campus Food Bank.
Madi Corry — Programs Manager, Campus Food Bank
Madi Corry is the Programs Manager for th Campus Food Bank. She has been at the Campus Food Bank in some capacity or another for the duration of her undergrad Psychology degree and then some (nearly 7 years!). In her current role, Madi gets to evaluate and expand how the organization can further address food insecurity on campus. Madi is passionate about working with volunteers and building connections across the campus community.