A food bank that serves new Canadians in one of the poorest and most densely populated neighbourhoods of Toronto says they are deep in debt and often short of food.

The Flemingdon Community Food Bank’s chair confirmed the organization is now $90,000 in rent arrears, and have recently experienced food shortages.

A Sept. 22 press release they sent out claimed that the charity was about to close imminently “due to a food shortage with our supplier the Daily Bread Food Bank.”

But Gail Nyberg, the executive director of Daily Bread – which distributes food to 130 member agencies including the Flemingdon Community Food Bank – said the urgent appeal for food caught her off guard. “We have no shortage of food at all,” she said. “They may (have one) and we don’t – (but) they haven’t told us that they do.”

According to reports from the Daily Bread, 98,395 pounds of food have been sent to the Flemingdon food bank since Jan. 1, which is up from 87,909 pounds that Daily Bread sent to them this time last year.

“But the thing that interests me is saying it is due to a food shortage,” she said. “We’re quite surprised at this. They don’t provide all of the food to Flemingdon,” said Nyberg, but “the lion’s share.” The Daily Bread has also written off money that Flemingdon owes them.

There are talks between Daily Bread, the Thorncliffe Neighbourhood Office, Flemingdon Community Legal Services, local MP Robert Oliphant and other interested parties who “are looking at this and prepared to take over the program,” said Nyberg continued. The plan is to set up a new food bank and they are actively searching for affordable space.

The various organizations are “prepared to step up and open a food bank in that area, but not one affiliated with this particular Board of Directors,” Nyberg added.

“You can’t get yourself into this much trouble.”

Abdul Hai Patel, who’s been the chair of the Flemingdon Community Food Bank’s board of directors for six years now, told the Star that rent in the basement suite of 10 Gateway Blvd. is $2,800 a month, but that their landlord, the Lakemount Development Corporation, “has been very gracious (allowing us) to stay here.”

Patel was not aware of another food bank opening. “We will see what happens if and when it opens,” he said. “And we will continue to serve as we are and as long as we are a member of the Daily Bread… We are not closing.”

But Marjorie Hiley, the executive director of the Flemingdon Community Legal Services, confirmed that she would assist in “winding down the corporation in an amicable fashion,” and then through a transitional period to start up a new corporation.

“It takes a while to come up with a new Board of Directors, bylaws etc. and everyone wants to do it properly,” she said.

On a recent visit to the bank, service users lined up their shopping carts and took away cereal, bread, yogurt, canned lentils and other groceries. The shelves weren’t packed, but they weren’t empty either.

But in any given week, 80 per cent of the shelves are empty, said Kate Ahmat, a program manager with the Flemingdon Park Ministry, which is associated with the food bank. “We get a delivery on Monday but by Wednesday we struggle to feed people for the next few days.”

“We have more in candies and snacks than in real table food.”

Just a few weeks ago, the food bank turned 13 families away, said William Heslop, who wrote the urgent news release and has worked at the food bank for the past three years. Last week, he said, they turned away eight families.

But Heslop thinks the food bank “will be OK . . . I don’t expect this week that I’ll have to postpone (feeding) any families (for the next little while) . . . but we need money.”

The food bank’s troubles are something that even Premier Kathleen Wynne, MPP for Don Valley West, has been involved in. In an emailed statement, she told the Star that her office had hosted a meeting last month with community groups, other elected officials and the board of the food bank at her constituency office “to try to find a way to overcome the challenges they’re facing and find the best path forward.”

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“I am optimistic that as we work together through some of these challenges, the Flemingdon Community Food Bank will continue to serve the community in a meaningful way,” she said.

Heslop estimated that 1,600 families come to pick up food each month and 4,700 families are registered with the food bank in total. They also do 142 home deliveries, according to David Lockett, a volunteer at the food bank for 14 years.

Patel did not sound resistant Tuesday to the idea of a new food bank. “We don’t have to be (the only one) there. It’s difficult to manage.”

Volunteers say they are always in need of staple items such as rice, flour, cooking oil, pasta, canned vegetables, fish and Halal soups, as well as things like cereal and peanut butter. Baby items, such as diapers and bottles, are also greatly appreciated.

Donations can be brought to the basement floor of 10 Gateway Blvd. between 10 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Monday and Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. For more information, call 416-425-1841.

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