The Archway Food Bank of Abbotsford is calling on the community to urgently raise $1.3 million before the end of the year to meet the rising demand for food among local residents.
“Right now, we’re serving more people than ever before, and without reaching this goal, we may have to look at making even deeper cuts to the kinds of food we can purchase to consistently provide well rounded and nutritious food hampers for each family,” said Rebecca Thuro, Archway food security manager.
The Archway Food Bank depends on financial contributions, grants, donated goods, and recovered food from grocery stores. However, with demand surging, the food bank increasingly needs to purchase pallets of essential items to keep shelves stocked.
The Archway Food Bank serves over 6,200 individuals each month which has gone up from an average of 5,000 people a month in 2024.
Beyond providing monthly food hampers, Archway runs the Christmas Bureau program, which supplies ingredients for a traditional holiday meal along with toys for children to help families celebrate the season.
“Even with bulk purchasing and incredible volunteer support, we’re facing a significant shortfall,” Thuro added. “Food banks are often the last resort for families after they’ve done everything they can to feed and house their family on their own. We can’t imagine not having enough food at the food bank when it’s needed most.”
Last year, the Archway Food Bank aimed to raise $1.2 million and nearly met that goal thanks to community generosity and matching campaigns.
The HungerCount 2025 report by Food Banks Canada recorded over 2.1 million visits to Canadian food banks in March 2025. This is the highest number recorded in history and has doubled since March 2019. Alarmingly, 19% of those visits were from people with job income – 4% points higher than people who reported no income.
“We are seeing more working parents than those without income accessing the food bank. This is surprising but highlights the fact that people are struggling to keep up with the rising costs of groceries and housing,” said Thuro.
At the Archway Food Bank last year, 38% of the people accessing food were children, 10% were seniors and 12% had a disability.
“We could not have conceived that our lives would have been quickly and dramatically altered, but truly appreciate the graciousness of this community,” shared an anonymous food bank client.
Those interested in making a donation can visit the Archway Food Bank website to donate online or see alternative donation methods. Organizations who would like to set up a fundraiser or food drive can email donate@archway.ca for more details.
We could not have conceived that our lives would have been quickly and dramatically altered, but truly appreciate the graciousness of this community.
Right now, we’re serving more people than ever before, and without reaching this goal, we may have to look at making even deeper cuts to the kinds of food we can purchase to consistently provide well rounded and nutritious food hampers for each family.