The Golden Food Bank Society is floating its funding hopes in a new direction.
Disappointed the Union of British Columbia Municipalities turned down an application for $50,000 in food bank support from its Poverty Reduction Planning and Action Program.
The application made through the Town of Golden was denied on the basis of Golden and Area A lacking a Poverty Reduction Plan.
“This response to our application was more or less anticipated as having a poverty reduction plan in place was a requirement for “Stream 2” funding,” says food bank executive director Julia Newbury. “However, UBCM’s response to our initial application offered an extension on the deadline to submit an application to develop a community-level poverty reduction plan under Stream 1.”
The UBCM Poverty Reduction Funding Program has two streams – Stream 1 for planning and assessments, or Stream 2 for action, which features implementation of the plan.
“While this was not our original aim when applying to the UBCM funding program, we recognize that the absence of a poverty reduction plan for our community may be a barrier, not only for accessing funding that would be impactful for residents experiencing or at risk of poverty, but also in having a cohesive, collaborative approach to poverty reduction for Golden and Area A,” said Newbury.
With food bank use having increased by 300 per cent since 2020, one of the indicators of poverty, Newbury says the society is interested in participating in a project that examines the root causes of high demand for food bank services.
“It is possible that with the plan in place, community organizations in Golden would have greater access to provincial funding for projects that aim to reduce poverty at the local level,” she says. “This would include food security initiatives, for which funding that has been available for a number of years but not yet accessed by our community.”
If approved, a new application called “A Common Agenda for Poverty Reduction in Golden & Area A,” is being submitted in conjunction with the Town of Golden and Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD.) The Golden Food Bank would be one of many stakeholders participating in the project, including people with a lived or living experience of poverty.
In the meantime, the food bank continues to serve many users and is moving full steam ahead with a number of projects.
Funded through a 2022 CBT ReDi Grant, administered by the Town of Golden, a new Community Tool Lending Library is being launched in June and will be open to all residents of Golden and Area A. It will offer a wide array of food processing and preservation equipment available on loan to clients and members of the Golden Food Bank Society at no cost, or for a small donation of $10 per rental to the community at large.
It is one of the programs the Golden Food Bank is developing to help locals build their knowledge and access resources to procure and preserve locally-grown foods, and prepare healthy meals from affordable ingredients.
“Reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food continues to be less attainable for many individuals and families in our community,” said Newbury. “Accessing food through conventional grocery stores can be a challenge due to increasing inflation, production and transportation costs, and increasing frequency of climate events.”
Understanding that many people want more fresh, nutritious options, finding ways to make locally-grown and produced food more accessible and available through the colder months is something the food bank wants to contribute to.”
With the launch of the Community Tool Lending Library, the food bank will add food preservation topics to its ongoing workshop series, which have been funded by a two-year Food & Access & Recovery Grant from Columbia Basin Trust.
The lending library will be available on the Golden Food Bank website beginning June 1. Questions about the library or any of the food bank’s education programs may be directed to Karen Temple-Beamish, volunteer & education coordinator, at karen@goldenfoodbank.ca.
Community members are invited to celebrate the launch of the lending library at a community barbecue in the Food Bank Garden located at 1407 9th Street South at 5:30 p.m. May 31. Tickets to the barbecue are free, but attendees are encouraged to RSVP at https://gfbagm.eventbrite.ca to help reduce food waste.
There will be fun and games for kids, and the new equipment will be on display. The barbecue will be followed by the food bank’s 2023 annual general meeting. Membership is required to vote.
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