TORONTO — Rogers Communications is donating one million meals and launching a national awareness campaign to help Food Banks Canada (FBC) in its efforts to raise $150 million to fund the public’s need for food for the next 90 days.
FBC directly supports 650 food banks, helping thousands of programs across the country, and some are experiencing up to a 50% decrease in donations with just over two weeks supply left, says the news release. The economic impact of Covid-19 has resulted in funding shortages and an unprecedented surge in demand at food banks, says the release.
Rogers says it will leverage the power of its 108 television and radio assets, along with its digital and social platforms, for an awareness campaign that will reach more than 30 million Canadians each week. Beginning this week and airing for the next four weeks, the public service announcements will air in high rotation, driving donations to foodbankscanada.ca “to help ensure our neighbours living with food insecurity in communities across the country have enough food to make it through this public health crisis,” reads the news release.
Donations will help Food Banks Canada provide local food banks with the resources they need to adapt their client delivery processes in light of social distancing, manage demand with a decrease in volunteer resources, purchase much needed staples and help clients in quarantine situations by providing essential food supports to them in home, says the release.
In addition, Rogers says it will bring more than one million meals to families across Canada through employee contributions and a corporate donation.
“During these challenging times, we all want to find ways of helping one another. Nobody should have to worry about where their next meal is coming from,” said Joe Natale, president and CEO of Rogers, in the news release. “Partnering with Food Banks Canada is one way our Rogers family of 25,000 team members can help. We hope to encourage fellow Canadians and other corporations to contribute in any way they can. Together we can all do our part to make these uncertain times a little easier.”
