Emergency Food Hampers

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Calgarians in temporary emergency situations can rely on the Food Bank to provide emergency food supplies.

• up to seven hampers in a 12 month period
• a minimum of 30 days between hamper requests
• first 3 hampers can be requested directly by the clients
• if  additional hampers are needed, a referral from a recognized agency or program is required
• each hamper contains approximately 7 days worth of nutritionally balanced groceries for each person in the household

Norton Rose Milk for Teens

• adds an additional carton of milk to the Emergency Food Hampers of low-income households with teens 13 to 17 years old
• because of this initiative, more than 10,000 adolescents receive additional milk to help meet their growing nutritional needs

Calgarians in need of food must call before visiting the Food Bank.

• Phone Room Volunteers ask several questions
• in addition to food, they may provide referrals to other service providers
• more often than not there is more than a shortage of food for our clients
• the additional referrals help callers to resolve the issues that have led to their crisis
• this is why more than 80% of our clients access the Food Bank less than four times...ever.

Our volunteers recognize that it is not always easy to answer the questions they pose.

• they work hard to handle every call efficiently and in a friendly manner
• clients will encounter the same questions and process each time a hamper is requested
• we recognize that circumstances can change from month to month

A hamper, once approved, is usually ready the following business day.

• when circumstances dictate, a hamper can be picked up on the same day as the call
• when picking up an Emergency Food Hamper, clients must produce:
  • 2 pieces of identification for each adult
  • 1 piece of identification for each child
  • this must be done every time a hamper is requested.

Emergency Food Hampers are picked up at our warehouse or from one of our six partner depots, located in SE Calgary, NE Calgary, NW Calgary and downtown.