Food bank in Alliston makes changes to meet growing demand

For the past three decades, the food bank in Alliston, known as the Good Shepherd Food Bank, has officially changed its name to the Alliston Food Bank.

"It has a reputation in the town, and we really felt it was time for a change. As the town is growing, we wanted to be easily accessible to find. We felt we had to modernize and become more visible in the community," said Alliston Food Bank President David Bradbury.

Officials said the need at the food bank had grown significantly.

• RELATED | Alliston food bank moves to bigger location following spike in demand

Bradbury said since December, the demand has gone up over 90 per cent.

"So, it's a real challenge to keep up with the demand. It's mostly people that are in financial problems, and we're getting more people that are working who can't afford groceries because of rent and housing costs," he noted.

In addition to the organization's new name, residents in the area will soon notice some new wheels on the road.

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With some financial help from Feed Ontario, the food bank was able to purchase a refrigerated van for deliveries to help meet the high demand.

"It's been phenomenal. We can pick up three skids of food from other food banks, which we could never do before and then with the food rescue temperature control, the numbers are just going up," said Bradbury.

New signage will go up at the Food Bank within the next month or two.