Food banks hope to receive surplus beef that is now waiting in cold storage.
The federal and Alberta governments have set aside $50 million to buy surplus product that is clogging freezers across the country. A committee has been formed to deal with meat distribution.
“The government hasn’t decided how much they will dispose of,” said Angela Knight, executive director of the Calgary Inter-faith Food Bank.
“At first food banks weren’t an option,” she said. However controversy driven by government officials’ comments that all the stored product could be destroyed, spurred food banks to make a request.
The Calgary facility can house up to 100,000 pounds of beef for food hamper distribution.
“Frozen ground hamburger is a staple in our hampers,” she said.
The Calgary facility acts as a distribution point for about 50 smaller banks across southern Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. A similar facility in Edmonton handles northern needs.
