Durham Region Municipalities Come Together to Support Hunger Action Month

BRANDON CLARK The Standard

NORTH DURHAM: Local municipalities are once again coming together for Hunger Action Month, to raise awareness and collect food and monetary donations, to fight hunger in the community.

Food insecurity doesn’t always look the way one might expect. It can affect anyone - a neighbour, coworker, senior, or a family struggling to keep up with the rising cost of everyday essentials.

The need across Durham remains significant. Over 880,000 visits were made to a food program, in Feed the Need in Durham’s network of 70 community food programs, last year, highlighting the important role emergency food support continues to play across the region.

From September 9th to October 5th, residents, businesses, and community groups can help, by donating non-perishable food at participating locations across Durham or by making a monetary donation online. In Scugog, we will be collecting non-perishable food items at the Municipal Office, 181 Perry Street, and Scugog Community Recreation Centre, 1655 Reach Street, on behalf of Operation Scugog. Any items placed in the collection bins, at these locations, will be delivered to Operation Scugog by Township staff.

Donations will support Feed the Need in Durham and participating community food programs, helping get food and other essential items to people who need them. For every $1 donated, Feed the Need in Durham can collect, store and distribute two meals and other needed products. Residents can also support Hunger Action Month by volunteering with Feed the Need in Durham.

Acceptable donations are non-perishable, unexpired food items. Food donations must be clean, meaning; no donations with dust, droppings, or anything else deemed unsanitary, such as spoiled or rotting food, will be accepted. Items which are acceptable must be before their “best before” date. Look for items which are nutritious and shelf-stable, such as canned meat or fish (i.e. chicken, tuna, salmon), other proteins (i.e. peanut butter, beans and lentils), canned vegetables and fruit, pasta and pasta sauce, baby food and formula, cereals and oatmeal, and personal hygiene items.

To find a nearby drop-off location, Scugog residents can visit scugog.ca/HungerAction.