<
https://reasonstobecheerful.world/how-food-banks-are-making-all-feel-welcome/>
"Michelle Scott, the communications and development manager for the Wood
Buffalo Food Bank, recalls the lightbulb moment that cemented the importance of
having culturally relevant food available for their clients. A gentleman from
North Africa was given a generic food hamper and he had to ask what the dried
bag of pasta was, and what to do with it. “How unfair is it for us,” says
Scott, “to say we are doing things to feed everyone in the community but yet
people we are feeding don’t know what they are eating.”
The Wood Buffalo Food Bank, in Fort McMurray, Alberta, fed 15,000 clients in
2021 to 2022. According to Scott, the region is a hub for newcomers to Canada,
and she estimates that at least half of the food bank’s clients are unfamiliar
with Western food.
Scott’s realization underscores a significant challenge faced by food banks and
pantries across North America: Food is more than just fuel for the body. It
carries deep significance that connects individuals to their beliefs and
heritage. Food banks, though, are nonprofit entities and, like the rest of us,
are challenged by the high cost of food. This often means that they buy
calorie-rich inexpensive products: canned soups, tinned fish or dried pasta.
But, these foods are not always the only foods people want.
Feedback received by the Ottawa Food Bank from a pilot project conducted
between 2019 and 2020 indicated a desire for ethnocultural vegetables, such as
okra, a traditional staple in African diets, to be available at food banks.
Now, the food bank grows okra on its farm.
Similar data was revealed in a report by the Food Bank of the Rockies, which
found that individuals visiting food pantries that don’t offer cultural food
preferences often feel stigmatized, unwelcome and unwilling to return.
Recognizing the importance of culturally relevant food, Dan Edwards, executive
director of the Wood Buffalo Food Bank, shared how it has always tried to
incorporate specific items into its hampers. “We’ve made sure to add supplies
for Bannock, a traditional Indigenous food, when it’s within our budget and
capacity,” says Edwards. Items such as corn flour, Halal meat, lentils and
spices are now added to food hampers if requested."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
