East Wellington Community Services food bank now has $1,000 to create an area where families with children and youth can select from a range of healthy snack choices.
The Grocery Foundation is helping to fund the EWCS food bank ‘Kids Zone’ program.
The grant program provides food banks in rural Ontario with an opportunity to increase the amount of fresh, healthy food available for children in their community.
“This project will provide support to youth with more nutritional food options,” said Rick Eller, manager community and volunteer services (Rockwood).
“Through the Kids Zone, it will allow our agency to purchase healthier snack alternatives that will be placed in a specific location in our food banks in Erin and Rockwood.
Parents will be able to select items from that area that will meet nutritional guidelines as per the Canada Food Guide and that their kids would enjoy to have included with their lunches or just to snack on in evenings or weekends.
EWCS operates two food bank locations that serve the residents in Erin and Guelph-Eramosa.
Through the grant and in partnership from the Ontario Association of Food Banks, EWCS can now designate an area in each food bank specifically designated for nutritional snacks for children and youth,” said EWCS manager of community and volunteer services (Erin) Erika Westcott. “Not only will we have the ability to purchase these items to have them available, but parents will now have the ability to be able to select the items themselves while taking into account food allergies or the dietary restrictions of their children,”she said.
The organization is working with Rockwood Centennial Public School on a pilot project that provides weekend packages of healthy food for children in JK through Grade 8 who have limited or no access to food.
