Delivery Program Spotlight

Bike Brigade volunteers play a key role in delivering groceries to our community members each week.

At the Parkdale Community Food Bank (PCFB), we believe that choice and community engagement are key to building sustainable and supportive programming. Our Delivery Program is a prime example of how we have shaped our programming around the feedback and needs of our community.

In April 2025, our Delivery Program Manager, Kelly Slover, shared the program's journey during Community Food Centres Canada's (CFCC's) "Finding the Model That Works" knowledge swap on food access models. She spoke on the program's founding, and how it has evolved in the years since.

Launched in 2020 during the early days of the pandemic, PCFB's Delivery Program was created in response to an urgent need. Many community members, particularly seniors, individuals with mobility issues, and immunocompromised individuals, could no longer safely access the food bank in person. To ensure no one was left behind, we began delivering groceries directly to our homebound neighbours.

When the program first launched, deliveries were assembled from the food bank’s regular inventory. Each household received a standard food box containing a variety of produce, pantry staples, dairy, and protein. By 2023, we recognized the need for change.

Our Delivery Program is able to operate thanks to the hard work of our volunteers.

Kelly began reaching out directly to community members to learn more about their dietary needs and preferences. Through these conversations, she discovered that many clients were diabetic, required soft foods, needed gluten-free or halal options, or had limited access to cooking facilities.

Guided by this feedback, Kelly made important changes:

• Expanded Dietary Options: She began sourcing groceries that better met the dietary needs of our community members, offering diabetic-friendly, gluten-free, lactose- and dairy-free, vegan, vegetarian, halal, carb-free, and soft-food options.

• Volunteer Training: She developed a detailed packing guide to support volunteers in creating food boxes that met each client's specific needs and preferences.

  
  

Today, about half of the PCFB's delivery program members follow at least one special diet. We continue to operate this program today, delivering groceries to approximately 300 households every week.

Interested in learning more about the Parkdale Community Food Bank Delivery Program? We’d love to connect! Send us an email to deliveries@pcfb.ca