Harvest Manitoba recently received a $500,000 donation from Farm Credit Canada, which will help the organization expand food rescue and distribution efforts across the province.
The funds will allow Harvest Manitoba to expand its current facilities, which are already operating beyond capacity. Expansion is necessary to meet both current and future demand. Each month, Harvest Manitoba provides food to more than 100,000 people, including families and children. Since 2020, food bank use in Manitoba has increased by more than 150 percent.
Harvest Manitoba plans to use the $500,000 donation from Farm Credit Canada to help build a 30,000-square-foot expansion that will allow them to process, store, and share even more food that might otherwise be wasted. The new space could be added to their current site on Winnipeg Avenue or built at a new location, which will be decided after consultations with donors and government partners.
Last year, Harvest Manitoba saved 8.7 million pounds of surplus food, and the planned expansion could help rescue another 8 million pounds each year. While most of the people they serve live in Winnipeg, more rural and northern communities and schools are also depending on their help.
