Daily Bread's Spring Drive falling short

Having raised only $75,000 and 25,000 pounds of food, the pressure is on

TORONTO, March 30, 2012 /CNW/ - With only two weeks left in the Spring Drive, Daily Bread is falling far short of its goals to raise $300,000 and 300,000 pounds of food.

"I would like to thank everyone who has donated so far to support this Spring Drive, but we are blowing the whistle early. Although the Spring Drive is always a bit slower than our other drives, these donation levels are unprecedentedly low and I am worried we won't make it," says Gail Nyberg, executive director at Daily Bread Food Bank. "I know that with all the talk of cuts, wage freezes and job losses over the past few days that donating to a food bank is not quite top of mind, but we hope that people can still hear us over all that noise and remember that every dollar counts and every can makes a difference."

Richard Matern, who coordinates Daily Bread's annual survey of people who are coming to food banks, knows first-hand how important the food bank is to people in the city: "We have had volunteers in over 50 food banks across the GTA and the stories they are hearing are heart-breaking. People and families from all walks of life with one thing in common - they never expected to be at a food bank. A lot of them never even knew where their local food bank was until they lost their job, escaped an abusive relationship, suffered a life-changing illness… these are exceptional Torontonians who are just trying to survive day-to-day with what little they have."

The Spring Drive runs until April 13. You can make a difference by donating online at www.dailybread.ca or by calling 416-203-0050. Cheques can be mailed to Daily Bread Food Bank at 191 New Toronto Street, Toronto ON M8V 2E7.

Drop off nutritious, non-perishable food at any local Toronto fire hall, as well as participating local Loblaws, nofrills or valu-mart grocery stores. Most needed food items include: baby formula and food; peanut butter; canned fruit or vegetables; canned fish or meat; dried pasta and tomato sauce; powdered, canned or tetra pak cartons of milk; macaroni and cheese; bags of rice; cans of lentils and beans; hearty soup or stew and bags of lentils.

As Canada's largest food bank, Daily Bread Food Bank serves people through neighbourhood food banks and meal programs in almost 170 member agencies across Toronto. Find out more about Daily Bread at www.dailybread.ca.

Daily Bread Food Bank is fighting to end hunger in our communities.

Jessica Ward
Communications Coordinator
T: 416-203-0050 ext. 328
E: [email protected]