It is no secret that communities across the province are seeing increased demand for food bank services. For some community members accessing these services can be extremely difficult simply because of where they live.
The Dufferin Food Share – Grand Valley is aiming to help tackle food insecurity faced by residents living in rural parts of Dufferin County by bringing services closer to them.
“Rural communities are often overlooked for community service organizations as a general, whether it’s food insecurity, mental health, addiction or shelters,” explained Carrie-Anne DeCaprio, manager of donor engagement and outreach for the Orangeville Food Bank.
The Dufferin Food Share – Grand Valley plans to bring food bank services closer to the residents who need them through their newly renovated space in the historical public-school house, located at 27 Main Street North in Grand Valley.
The new space will allow the Dufferin Food Share to implement a similar model used at the Orangeville Food Bank.
“[Rural residents] should have access to the same services in Dufferin County, but because there’s usually a lack of space in these smaller communities to bring those services in, they’re quite often overlooked and people are having to drive or do without.”
One of the biggest known barriers for residents living in rural Dufferin County in accessing food bank services is transportation.
“If you are unable to afford food, you’re probably not able to access your own vehicle or a cab. Having these services locally is really important,” said DeCaprio.
A key part of the Dufferin Food Share – Grand Valley expansion is that it will also allow the organization to handle usage growth as the population of the community increases.
According to the Orangeville Food Bank, the Dufferin Food Share provides just shy of 2,500 pounds of food per month to their clients in Grand Valley. The food bank is currently serving 33 households, which is approximately 78 individuals. Of those individuals 24 are children and three are unhoused persons in the community.
“Our move into Grand Valley is part of the first step in more outreach, which will allow us to partner with other community organizations, increasing service levels to the entire community, not just for food insecurity,” said DeCaprio.
The new site of the Dufferin Food Share – Grand Valley began serving community members late summer of 2025, opening its doors on August 25 with an official bread breaking ceremony. Phase one sees the food bank available Tuesday morning (from 10 a.m. to noon) and Thursday afternoon (from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.). Phase two of the project will see renovations to the building which will add a fully inspected community kitchen and office spaces. Expected completion for phase two is late 2025.