BOARD CHAIR Message
AMY LEONG
This past year has been a historic one with the continued global pandemic and the ongoing struggle faced by every citizen of the world. Here at home, the Calgary Food Bank did not experience any setbacks but instead rose to the challenge.
Read more.
PRESIDENT AND CEO message
JAMES MCARA
Thanks to Calgarians, Albertans and Canadians, our journey through the pandemic is a journey together. We are able to meet the ever-changing needs for food security. We are not in this alone — we are in this together. Read more.
Year In Review
Emergency Food Hampers
Hampers for the Homeless
Weekends and More
Welcome Home
Food Share
Food Rescue
Food Link
The Gift of time
Fiscal year September 1, 2020 to August 31, 2021
Financial Snapshot
Funds Donated
$19.9 Million
- Personal (47%) 47%
- Corporations (22%) 22%
- Foundations (21%) 21%
- Communities (10%) 10%
VALUE OF FOOD Donated
$34.7 Million
- Gleaning (67%) 67%
- Community Donation Bins (13%) 13%
- Food Drives (10%) 10%
- Other (6%) 6%
- Farms (4%) 4%
PROGRAM INVESTMENT
$44.4 Million
- Emergency Food Hampers $35.2M (79.27%) 79.27%
- Food Link $3.6M (8.10%) 8.10%
- Food Share $3.5M (7.93%) 7.93%
- Hampers for the Homeless $1.2M (2.70%) 2.70%
- Weekends and More $426,464 (.96%) .96%
- Purchasing Power $232,875 (.52%) .52%
- Welcome Home $227,374 (.51%) .51%
Emergency Food Hamper Program
The Emergency Food Hamper Program has seen a staggering 30% increase in demand for food support this year. What we typically see in a year, such as the end of seasonal jobs or increased living costs in the winter, is now coupled with continued restrictions and precarious employment. Financial supports like the Canada Emergency Response Benefit and Employment Insurance have waned, and we continued to see individuals laid off due to the pandemic and still have not found work. The majority (62%) of clients received three or less hampers this year. Notably, only 5% of clients received more than 12 hampers in the 12-month period, indicating that most demand continues to come from a population that requires immediate and temporary assistance versus long-term food support.
- Families (57%) 57%
- Individuals (43%) 43%
- Children (37%) 37%
- Single Parents (14%) 14%
- Working (22%) 22%
hampers distributed a day
%
increase from last year
calls answered for support
emergency food hampers distributed
Every Contribution Of Time Makes An Impact

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT: COLLEEN LARSON
Colleen is a bubbly, outgoing, and enthusiastic mom of three who works in the distribution area efficiently packing grocery carts with healthy food. She says there is a stark difference in the volunteer experience now compared to pre-pandemic times. “Before the pandemic, I’d come home dog-tired after a very busy three-hour shift. We helped bag food for clients, and get it out to their cars, there were often hugs, stories shared, and we even got to hold babies. Now, we simply work one day a week for two and a half hours loading carts for distribution. Not being able to interact a the clients is tough but the highlight is seeing and working with my fellow volunteers,” Colleen said, affectionately referring to her group as “The A Team”. One of Colleen’s most poignant memories as a volunteer was meeting an elderly couple who needed food support. “I can still picture them – an impeccably dressed lovely couple, they could have been my Mom and Dad,” Colleen explained. It struck her that even though we may not know people’s circumstances, that’s okay. It matters that anyone in a crisis knows they can come here for help.
different volunteer roles
Volunteer Hours
Volunteer Groups a year
%
of our workforce are volunteers
Community
964 events raised $3.5 Million and 1.5 Million pounds of food.
Food industry organizations
individuals
organizations
COMMUNITY EVENTS
FOUNDATIONS
Previous Annual Reports

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AMY LEONG
At the same time, when we are relieving hunger for hundreds today, we are moving towards the future. We continue to use our data to inform and navigate our decisions. We take in feedback, learnings, and new information. We engage our stakeholders and collaborate with like-minded organizations to combat poverty, advocate for policy change, and address root causes. It takes time to make meaningful and systemic impacts as we continue to supply real-time data and testimony on the effects of food insecurity to those change-makers.
You can’t get anywhere if you don’t have a plan so we continue to refine the strategic roadmap to provide direction to our teams and community alike. As we look to the future and embark on our 40th year of food bank operations, we will continue to vision a hunger-free community while listening to and collaborating with leaders in hope that we do not have to see another 40th anniversary.
JAMES MCARA
Despite the current confluence of events, we still took time to plan our future. We are taking action in partnerships with key organizations, strengthening and using our voice with greater conviction and advocating for change supported by real-world experience and data, always focused on root causes and food security. Change does not happen overnight, but the combination of an economic crisis and a global pandemic has brought greater awareness to the need for domestic food security and recognition for those who work tirelessly to ensure it for others.
Food banks are no longer absent from disaster management and planning, and we are at the table to ensure basic needs are not forgotten. The future is uncertain and often scary, but there is so much opportunity and that is invigorating. Regardless of the challenges that come with uncertainty, we will embrace the opportunity to address those core issues that have held us back. Thanks to an amazing community, we can help others without delay. Our commitment is to continue to build on what works and let go of the antiquated. We will also remember to value ideas and actions that got us to where we are today, always remembering that our goal is to live in a community that does not need a food bank.
Thanks to Calgarians, Albertans and Canadians, our journey through the pandemic is a journey together. We are able to meet the ever-changing needs for food security. We are not in this alone — we are in this together.