First-ever Purolator Tackle Hunger National Red Bag campaign delivers more than 144,500 pounds of food to local food banks across Canada

Purolator Tackle Hunger unites communities in 14 Canadian cities to address the urgent need for food

TORONTO, Oct. 11, 2023 /CNW/ - Purolator, in collaboration with partners and Canadians from coast to coast, delivered the equivalent of 144,566 pounds of donated food to food banks across Canada during the Purolator Tackle Hunger^® National Red Bag campaign in September. This effort reflects Purolator's long-standing commitment to support Canadian communities and to help address food insecurity in this country.

Purolator, in collaboration with partners and Canadians from coast to coast, delivered the equivalent of 144,566 pounds of donated food to food banks across Canada during the Purolator Tackle Hunger® National Red Bag campaign in September. (CNW Group/Purolator Inc.)

First launched in 2018, the Red Bag campaign has previously been held regionally; given the urgent need, this year's campaign was expanded to a national program. "The success of our Purolator Tackle Hunger National Red Bag campaign demonstrates the positive impact we can make when we work together to achieve a common goal," said John Ferguson, President and CEO, Purolator. "For the past 20 years, our employees have been incredibly committed to this grassroots initiative to help feed those facing hunger in Canada."  

Throughout the National Red Bag campaign, Purolator and food bank volunteers distributed bags to residents' doorsteps in select neighbourhoods across Canada. The community response was overwhelming. Residents generously filled the bags with non-perishable food items for Purolator to collect a week later and deliver to local food banks. The company also held food drives at local grocery stores where shoppers brought or purchased food donations to support the fight against hunger.

"As more and more Canadians are relying on food banks, our Purolator Tackle Hunger program is the most important it's been in its two-decade history," added Ferguson. "Together with our employees, partners, customers and the communities we serve, we remain as committed as ever to always working to support food security for Canadians."

The Purolator Tackle Hunger National Red Bag campaign took place in September in the following communities:

• Barrie, Ont., in support of the Barrie Food Bank
• Beamsville, Ont., in support of Community Care of West Niagara
• Burlington, Ont., in support of the Dundas Salvation Army — Community and Family Services
• Elliot Lake, Ont., in support of the Elliot Lake Emergency Food Bank and Spanish Food Bank
• Haliburton, Ont., in support of the Haliburton 4Cs Food Bank
• Maple Ridge, B.C., in support of the Friends in Need Food Bank
• Milton, Ont., in support of Food for Life and The Salvation Army food banks
• Moncton, N.B., in support of the Second Mile Food Bank
• North Bay, Ont., in support of the North Bay Food Bank
• Scarborough, Ont., in support of the Scarborough Food Security Initiative Food Bank
• Stratford, Ont., in support of the Stratford House of Blessing Food Bank
• Val-d'Or, Que., in support of the Centre de Bénévolat de la Vallée-de-l'Or
• Toronto, Ont., in support of the Daily Bread Food Bank
• Winnipeg, Man., in support of Harvest Manitoba Food Bank Network

Canadians can support food banks across the country by making online donations at purolatortacklehunger.com or by dropping off non-perishable food donations to any Purolator Shipping Centre nationwide.

Facts about hunger in Canada

• Poverty is a reality for at least 2.8 million Canadians, and even more live with food insecurity. (Source: Food Banks Canada's inaugural Poverty Report Cards, Sept. 2023)
• The number of people served per month by non-profit organizations dispensing food is expected to increase by 60 per cent in 2023, on top of 134 per cent growth in 2022. (Source: Second Harvest, 2022)
• Food prices are expected to increase by five to seven per cent in 2023, with the most substantial increases in vegetables, dairy and meat. (Source: Canada's Food Price Report, 2023)
• An average family of four will spend up to $16,288.41 per year on food in 2023, an increase of up to $1,065.60 over 2022. (Source: Canada's Food Price Report, 2023)
• In Canada, 33.1 per cent of food bank users are children, though they represent only 18.8 per cent of the population. (Source: HungerCount 2022, Food Banks Canada)

About Purolator Tackle Hunger^®

Canadian food banks had 1.5 million visitors in March 2022 — the highest March usage ever seen in Canada, according to the Food Banks Canada's HungerCount 2022. As part of Purolator's commitment to helping alleviate hunger in the communities where it operates, the organization works closely with its employees, partners, agents, customers and Canadian food banks to collect donations and help raise awareness about the issue of food insecurity. Since the inception of Purolator's employee-led grassroots program 20 years ago, Purolator Tackle Hunger^® has helped deliver more than 20 million pounds of food to food banks across Canada. For more information, visit purolatortacklehunger.com.

SOURCE Purolator Inc.

Media contact: Courtney Reistetter, Senior Manager, Corporate Communications, [email protected], 416 407-5424