Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau announced the Emergency Food Reserve Fund is being doubled to $200 million.
The new funding will provide $18.5 million to Food
Banks Canada, $18.5 million to Breakfast Club of Canada, $8.9 million to Second
Harvest, $8.9 million to Community Food Centres Canada, $8.85 million to the
Salvation Army, and $1.34 million to La Tablée des Chefs.
A further $5 million will be allocated from reserve
funds.
Bibeau made the announcement, alongside Indigenous
Services Minister Marc Miller and Northern Affairs Minister Daniel Vandal,
during a roundtable event with front-line volunteers and food security
organization workers from across Canada.
During the roundtable people heard about the work being
done by volunteers and workers who face more
demands with fewer resources.
The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened food security
concerns, particularly in northern and Indigenous communities. Local food
organizations are often strained to find adequate volunteers and staff.
Indigenous Services Canada will use $30
million of the new funding to bolster its Indigenous Community Support Fund,
bringing this fund’s total to $1.1 billion.
