Wood Buffalo Food Bank feels pinch after wildfire

The food bank in Fort McMurray has given out more hampers in the last two months than it did in all of 2015, mostly to families that have never used it before. 

"For both June and July ... we've given out 4,915 hampers," said executive director Arianna Johnson, executive director of the Wood Buffalo Food Bank. "It's about a thousand more than we gave out last year."

People returned to Fort McMurray in early June after wildfire forced the complete evacuation of the city on May 3.

The food bank was able to reopen on June 11. Since then, staff have given out 150 hampers each day.

Almost 95 per cent of the people who have used the food bank after the evacuation are first-time users, Johnson said. 

The food bank has shifted from providing monthly hampers which contain primarily non-perishable items to weekly hampers which contain more fresh food.

The lengthy evacuation forced food bank staff to destroy 80 per cent of food stocks once they were allowed back into their building. But food banks across the province helped them re-stock the shelves.

Now they're feeling the pinch again, and hoping for support.

"We're really looking for monetary donations to assist us in purchasing things as we run out of them, as well as helping us purchase those perishable goods, because they are an important part of a well balanced diet for our clients," Johnson said. 

The food bank is looking for donations of canned meats, dried goods, and canned fruit and vegetables.