CBC B.C.'s Food Bank Day raises almost $3M for those in need
CBC News | Posted: December 1, 2022 8:37 PM | Last Updated: January 12, 2023
Visits to the food bank in B.C. have been increasing more than the national average
CBC has been raising money for British Columbia food banks for more than three decades, and the tradition continued in December.
The 36th annual CBC B.C. Food Bank Day kicked off Dec. 2 with special broadcasts, while listeners were encouraged to donate up until Dec. 31 to help those in need.
A total of $2,967,719.26 was raised by British Columbians in 2022, organizers said, after all donations online and by mail were tallied.
This brings the total amount raised by CBC Food Bank Day events over the years to just over $19 million.
Fundraising festivities had been adapted to an online environment over the last two years due to the pandemic, but in 2022 CBC opened its doors once again.
A small, intimate live studio audience joined program hosts at the CBC Vancouver Broadcast Centre for the day's special programs.
With food insecurity higher than ever, the demand in B.C. for food banks is increasing. The amount of food provided by the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, one of the province's largest, has nearly doubled in the last two years.
A new report from Food Banks Canada says food bank visits in B.C. have been increasing more than the national average due to the high cost of living and displacement from natural disasters like wildfires and flooding.
Dan Huang-Taylor, the executive director of Food Banks B.C., says they have seen an increase in visits from Indigenous people, immigrants and refugees and people with disabilities, as well as students and children.
The report found one in three people who access a food bank is a child.
At the same time, Huang-Taylor said, the costs of running food banks are up, and donations are down.
"The numbers are jarring."
In 2021, CBC B.C. Food Bank Day raised $2,973,015.