B.C. food bank received surge of U.S. produce as Canadians avoided buying it

The Canadian Press

· Posted: Mar 20, 2025 9:27 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

The inclination toward buying Canadian has created a impermanent metallic lining for a nutrient slope successful Nanaimo, B.C., which has been flooded with hundreds of kilograms of American produce. 

Peter Sinclair, enforcement manager of Loaves & Fishes Community Food Bank, says a nutrient betterment programme allows them to judge surplus oregon unsold items from their market store partners and wholesalers.

He says erstwhile the speech of tariffs betwixt Canada and the United States started, they saw a leap successful donations of American nutrient of everything from cauliflower to lettuce. 

Sinclair says they don't usually way the state of root for donated food, but their warehouse manager has estimated astir 300 to 400 kilograms much of American nutrient has travel in, compared to what is normal. 

The roar lasted for 5 weeks earlier it began trailing disconnected past week, a downward inclination that Sinclair says whitethorn beryllium owed to retailers adjusting their purchasing to lucifer what Canadians want. 

Dan Huang-Taylor, enforcement manager of Food Banks B.C., says it doesn't travel arsenic a astonishment to him due to the fact that erstwhile helium goes market shopping, helium sees a batch of U.S. products marked down due to the fact that "clearly, they are not selling."

Huang-Taylor says he's acrophobic for erstwhile the interaction of the American tariffs commencement to origin terms surges astatine the market store, which volition marque beingness little affordable for Canadians.

"We judge that the tariff volition marque things overmuch harder for people, so we expect much radical needing to entree nutrient banks successful the months and years ahead."