Good food changes everything

2019-20 Annual Report

We acknowledge that the land on which we live, work and gather throughout history has been home to the Wendat, Anishinaabe, Hodinöhsö:ni’, and Mississaugas of the Credit. In efforts to decolonize our work, we will continue to learn from and support Indigenous communities as they strengthen health, culture, and sovereignty through food.

Your support laid the foundation for resilient communities during this pandemic.

Nick Saul, CEO

Our Highlights
Your Impact
Our Community
Our Donors
Board of Directors
Revenues and Expenditures

Our highlights

Thanks to your generosity last year, more Canadians built skills, health, and connection through food.

Together, we expanded across Canada, innovated new programs and mobilized communities to take action on the issues that matter to them. You helped advance our work with Indigenous communities in meaningful ways. Here are some highlights from last year.

Mount Paul Community Food Centre and Nelson Community Food Centre became the first two CFCs in British Columbia, improving health, belonging and social justice in those communities.

Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre in Iqaluit, NU, became the first Community Food Centre in a northern community, where food insecurity is twice as high as the national average.

Our Good Food Organizations network, which supports members to offer food programs focused on health and equity, expanded to include 67 new members, bringing the total to 200+

A new knowledge sharing group is connecting Indigenous communities across the country. 27 members from Saskatchewan to Nunatsiavut share how they are reviving food traditions in their communities.

People of all ages were supported to make healthy lifestyle changes through new food skills, exercise, mindfulness, and access to affordable fruits and vegetables, thanks to three innovative health promotion programs: FoodFit, Market Greens, and Mind Your Food.

42 grants got more kids growing, cooking and sharing food; helped people on limited incomes improve their health; made community spaces more welcoming; and built CFC staff capacity and connection

Community members in 17 cities advocated on the issue of food insecurity through 30 all-candidates events and vote pop-ups during the 2019 federal election.

Your
impact

We asked people across the country how they would describe their Community Food Centre. A vast majority called it “a community.”

As a donor, you’re supporting vital efforts to ensure everyone has dignified access to good food. But you’re doing even more than that. You’re building community. You’re building health. You’re changing lives.

Your support means better access to healthy food

0/10 participants say the CFC is an important source of healthy food
0 nutritious, delicious meals were served last year

Your support means improved physical and mental health

0/4 participants noticed an improvement in their physical and/or mental health since they started coming to the CFC
0/3 participants said improvements to their health were a result of the healthy food they access at the CFC

Your support means stronger communities

0/10 participants feel they belong to a community at their CFC
0/2 More than half of participants say they’ve become more involved in their community because of something they did or learned at the CFC

Your support helps change lives

Our
community

Good food revives traditions

Our Indigenous partners are sharing the unique experiences of their communities to help revive food traditions. We’re committed to supporting their work through funding and learning from them as they strengthen health, culture and sovereignty through food.

“I’d love to visit the communities in this network who have brought back food traditions, and impart that knowledge here. My dream is to have a Jiibaakwe-gamik (“the cooking house” in Ojibwe), a space to bring people together around traditional foods.”

Janet Owl

Nutrition Educator
Sagamok Anishnawbek, Indigenous Knowledge Sharing Network member

Janet's story

“It’s important to us to be more than a funder. We want to connect with and learn from communities. We wanted to support Indigenous food programs as many of our union members are Indigenous or working within those communities. We recognized we had to do more.”

Doug Olthuis

Executive Director
Steelworkers Humanity Fund

Doug's story

Good food changes lives

What does it mean to change lives through food? For Janille, it means better health and a sense of belonging. For Joe, it means bringing a community together with a common purpose.

“I’ve really come out of my shell. I look forward to [coming here] now. I feel safe. And my health has improved so much. It sounds dramatic, but this class and the food have literally changed my life.”

Janille

community member
Mount Paul CFC, Kamloops

Janille's Story

“The idea for a Community Food Centre may start with food, but it’s really a vision for building a community. As an architect, I’m inspired to see folks coming together to reimagine a community space and make it their own.”

Joe Lobko

donor

Joe's Story

Good food builds connection

Whether it’s sharing a meal or cooking for people we care about, food brings people together. This is the foundation of our new national fundraiser, The Big Social. Here’s what cooking up change means for Big Social hosts Lila and Libby.

“The Big Social was an opportunity for our whole community to connect over food -- something we do at our CFC every day. Thanks to our local chef supporters and to everyone who hosted meals at home, we’re building a healthier, more connected community.”

Lila Knox

Director
NorWest Co-op CFC, Winnipeg

Lila's Story

“We live in a country with great privilege and inequality, and we forget that people struggle -- not just to afford food, but to find a place to belong. That’s why I hosted a Big Social meal. It’s so important for all of us to have a place to go where we feel valued.”

Libby Wildman

donor

Libby's story

Good food empowers communities

To build a healthier, more inclusive country, good food is only the beginning. Our partners support community members to bring their skills and expertise to the table. As a result, people feel empowered to change their communities for the better.

“I was afraid I was going to end up in a wheelchair. But I’m doing a lot better because of the exercises we do—aerobics, yoga. We have a little coffee and breakfast, always healthy food. I like how they treat you well—with kindness and respect.”

Felix

community member
Hamilton CFC

Felix's story

“As a pharmacist, I see patients with diet-related illnesses who face the impossible choice of paying for either medication or food. I want to support an organization that provides more than food. I want to help empower communities to make real change.”

Jennifer Lake

monthly donor

Jennifer's story

our donors

The generous support of the following individuals, foundations, government, agencies and businesses directly contributed to our work. Your contributions have supported the development of centres, programs, events, evaluations and other centralized leadership resources. Funders and sponsors that contributed to Community Food Centres Canada are listed for the period between April 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020.

$1,000,000+

The Sprott Foundation

$250,000 to $999,999
- The Arrell Family Foundation
- P. & L. Odette Charitable Foundation
- President’s Choice Children’s Charity™
- The Public Health Agency of Canada
- Joannah and Brian Lawson
- The WB Family Foundation
$100,000 to $249,999
- Anonymous (2)
- BMO Financial Group
- Canada's Great Kitchen Party
- Cormark Securities Inc.
- The Lawson Foundation
- The Metcalf Foundation
- The Roof Garden Foundation
- MacFeeters Family Fund at Toronto Foundation
- Maple Leaf Centre for Action on Food Security
- Patrick and Barbara Keenan Foundation
- Peter Gilgan Foundation
$50,000 to $99,999
- Anonymous (2)
- CIBC
- Manulife
- Precision Nutrition
- RBC Foundation
- The New Farm
- The Young Fund at Hamilton Community Foundation
- WW Canada Ltd.
$20,000 to $49,999
- Anonymous
- Canada Gives - The Stait Family Fund
- The Catherine and Maxwell Meighen Foundation
- Donner Canadian Foundation
- Laugh Out Loud Leaside
- The MacMillan Family Foundation
- Maytree Foundation
- McConnell Foundation
- Medavie
- Moez & Marissa Kassam Foundation
- The Pulla Family
- Elana Rosenfeld
- Scaramouche Restaurant
- Steve and Sally Stavro Family Foundation
- The W.P. Scott Charitable Foundation
$10,000 to $19,999
- Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA)
- David Ceolin and Victoria Birkett
- Enbridge Gas Inc.
- Christian Exshaw
- Fiera Capital Foundation
- Garland
- Richard and Nancy Hamm
- J.P. Bickell Foundation
- Ana P. Lopes, C.M. and Don Tapscott, C.M.
- The McLean Foundation
- McLean Smits Family Foundation
- Neal Brothers Inc.
- Brendan Pennylegion
- Pitblado Family Foundation
- Riverside Naturals (MadeGood)
- Erica Shuttleworth and Michael Rothfeld
- Steelworkers Humanity Fund
- Taylor Irwin Family Fund at Toronto Foundation
- TD Securities Underwriting Hope Fund
- T.R Meighen Family Foundation
$5,000 to $9,999
- Acosta/Natural Specialty Sales
- Eric Belanger
- John Budreski
- Susan and Bob Busby
- Don Cranston and Megan Hill
- Erica and James Curtis
- Angelique Dias
- EC Consulting Inc.
- Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario Humanity Fund
- Anton Erdody
- Bradley Finch
- Andrew Fleming
- Robert Forbrigger
- Christopher Gratias
- Amichay Greenstein
- Peter Hwang
- Michael Kelly and Marisa Mills
- KIND Snacks
- Vincent Lee
- Jialiang Liu
- Longos
- Trenton Mackenzie-Armes
- Robin MacAulay and Charles Gane
- McCormick Canada
- Meridian Credit Union
- Rory Mitz
- Kevin Mol
- Paul Nazar
- Nelson Arthur Hyland Foundation
- Brandon Newell
- Osahon Omokhodion
- Alex Prole
- Righteous Gelato Ltd
- Conrad Santos
- Susan Vardon and Kevin White
- Amanda and Ryan Voegeli
$1,000 to $4,999
- James Aikenhead
- Ryan Baillargeon
- Erica Baron and Ken Hunt
- Loni Bassehila
- Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
- Cafe Belong
- Canoe
- Aaron Carter
- Jessica Chan
- Ken Chaplin
- Brad Charlton
- Michael Chiarotto
- Jolene Cook
- CORE Architects Inc.
- Curtis Christopherson
- Dailo
- Janet and Douglas Davis
- Sarah Davis
- Daniel Demsky
- Disney VolunEARS Committee
- Douglas and Margaret Derry Foundation
- Michael Egden
- Empire Life
- Gareth Everard
- Doug Ewart and Judith Keene
- Michel Falcon
- Jeffrey Feldberg
- Fidelity Investments Canada
- Anne and Ron Foerster
- Morghan Fortier
- Andrew Frank
- Jayson & Kandis Gaignard
- Sam and Schuster Gindin
- Mike Hart
- Jane Hartnell
- Andrew Houldsworth
- Wilson Hung
- iA Financial Group
- IMG Canada Inc.
- Java Solutions Inc.
- John Vince Foods
- Timothy Jones
- Brett Jubinville
- Jordan Kennie
- David Kirkwood and Sarah Crawford
- Barry Kowal
- Ben Kramer
- Ivy Lam
- Danny Lee
- Lexus On the Park
- Mad Radish
- Andrew Marsh
- Kieran Mathew
- Craig Miller and Susan Meech
- Michael Murphy
- Daniel Nahmias and Neetu Thind
- The National, LLC
- Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP
- Nosco Media Inc.
- Olivia Ostrow
- Ozery’s Pita Break Inc
- Blair Robert Panes
- Rachna Patel
- Kait Pavletich
- PayPal Giving Fund
- Myron Pestaluky and Kelly Pronyk
- Jodi Pudge
- Kelsey Ramsden
- Rapid Group Inc.
- Irfhan Rawji
- Red Studio Inc Architects
- Andrea and Adrian Rocca
- Kenneth Rotenberg
- Mark and Karuna Satov
- Linda and Bill Saul
- Pat and John Saul
- Paul Snelson
- David Swain and Janet Brown
- Cherry Tan
- Union
- Elsbeth Vaino
- Jesse Vallins
- Anna-Joy Veenstra
- Matthew Wallace
- Matthew Watson
- Lucy Waverman
- Weber-Stephen Products LLC
- Wholly Veggie
- Libby Wildman
- Runa Whitaker
- Yorkshire Valley Farms
- Helen Zhang

In-kind support

$100,000 to $249,999
- Corus Entertainment
$20,000 to $49,999
- Borden Ladner Gervais LLP
- Toronto Life
$10,000 to $19,999
- Higgins Event Rentals
- Propeller Coffee Co.
- The Printing House
- Yelp
$1,000 to $4,999
- Beau's Brewing Co.
- Cave Spring Vineyard
- Core Event Staffing
- CXBO Chocolates
- J Sutton Communications
- Ruby Watchco
- Steamwhistle Brewery
- Top Shelf Distillers
- Tawse Winery
- 13th Street Winery

Board of Directors

Brian Lawson
Chair and Treasurer

Vice-Chair
Brookfield Asset Management, Inc.
Dr. Kwame McKenzie
Vice-Chair

CEO
Wellesley Institute
Ana P. Lopes
C.M., Secretary

Corporate Director
Tapscott Group
Sandy Houston

President and CEO
George Cedric Metcalf Charitable Foundation
Joyce Carter

President and CEO
Halifax International Airport Authority
Phil Caravaggio

Co-founder
The Roof Garden Foundation
Dr. Gaynor Watson-Creed

Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Health
Province of Nova Scotia
Judy Pfeifer

Chief Public Affairs Officer
Financial Services Regulatory Authority

2019-20
Revenues and expenditures

60% Foundations
19% Corporate
10% Government
9% Individuals & Families
2% Interest & Other

78% Programs & Grants
14% Fundraising
8% Administration

These figures are unaudited. For our audited financial statements, please visit our website at cfccanada.ca.

Our highlights

Your impact

Your support means better access to healthy food

Your support means improved physical and mental health

Your support means stronger communities

Our community

Good food revives traditions

Good food changes lives

Good food builds connection

Good food empowers communities

our donors

Overall donations

$1,000,000+

$250,000 to $999,999

$100,000 to $249,999

$50,000 to $99,999

$20,000 to $49,999

$10,000 to $19,999

$5,000 to $9,999

$1,000 to $4,999

In-kind support

$100,000 to $249,999

$20,000 to $49,999

$10,000 to $19,999

$1,000 to $4,999

Board of Directors

2019-20 Revenues and expenditures

Your
impact

Our
community

2019-20
Revenues and expenditures