Monetary gifts made to Food Banks Canada help us make a world of difference in the lives of people affected by food insecurity, but gifts in kind serve an equally important role in our work to ensure that no one is left behind on the mission to end hunger in this country.
Gifts in kind are donations of goods or services other than cash that can help ease the struggles of Canada’s food bank network as it is being stretched to its limits due to demand that is higher than ever, with nearly 1.5 million visits made to food banks across the country in March 2022 alone.
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From food transportation to cold storage to warehousing services, these valuable gifts go a long way toward ensuring that every person in Canada who is experiencing food insecurity is given access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food as soon as possible.
Food Banks Canada is grateful to our partners, whether a large corporation, a small company, or an individual, and we look forward to welcoming more in-kind donors in the year ahead.
CP Holiday Train returns to the rails
Canadian Pacific (CP) is one of several companies that are providing Food Banks Canada with critical in-kind support. Last year, thanks to CP providing a significant in-kind donation of a service that is pivotal to our work – transportation – Food Banks Canada was able to move more than 795,000 pounds of fresh, perishable foods through our National Food Sharing System.
In addition to their in-kind support nationally, CP is also dedicated to their support of community food banks across the country through their annual CP Holiday Train.
Since the CP Holiday Train program launched in 1999, it has raised more than $21 million and collected 5 million pounds of food for community food banks across North America.
Now celebrating its 24th year, the CP Holiday Train returned to the rails this season on its first cross-continent tour in three years, following virtual concerts in the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021.
The 2022 tour launched on November 23 in Maine, for the first time, before hosting shows on November 24 in Lac-Megantic, Sherbrooke and Farnham, Que.
The tour will feature 168 live shows, including Winnipeg on December 3; Calgary on December 11; and a final show in Port Coquitlam, B.C., on December 18.
Most importantly, the Holiday Train will again raise much-needed money and food for local food banks, as well as awareness for food security issues in communities along the CP network.
Holiday Train shows are free to attend. CP asks attendees to bring a cash or non-perishable food donation if they’re able.