Kawartha Lakes Food Sources Achieves National Accreditation
January 27, 2025 (Lindsay, Ontario) – Kawartha Lakes Food Source celebrated becoming an early accredited member of Food Banks Canada, the national leader in addressing food insecurity in Canada. To achieve accreditation, Kawartha Lakes Food Source (KLFS) successfully met 78 different standards across 6 sections in Food Banks Canada’s (FBC) newly established Standards of Excellence.
Sections of the Standards of Excellence include Governance & Administration, People Management, Financial & Legal, Client Service & Care, Public Engagement & Fundraising, and Food Operations & Food Safety. FBC’s Standards of Excellence provided KLFS with an opportunity not only to assess operations and make improvements, but also to gain confidence in the organization’s existing efficacy.
“We were proud to find we were already in compliance with 70% of the standards, meaning we only had to create from scratch very few policies to meet the requirements,” says Executive Director Heather Kirby after she and past Board Chair Rose Barg completed the verification process with FBC.
With the increasing number of individuals relying on KLFS programs and member food banks to feed their families, KLFS is dedicated to being a reliable and accessible support system for the community. The need for food support in the City of Kawartha Lakes has never been so palpable:
From January 1 to December 31, 2024, KLFS member food banks were visited a total of 16,362 times, serving a total of 2,647 unique individuals throughout the year. Not only did members serve 148 more individuals than they did in 2023, but KLFS also acquired a new member food bank, established this year in Lindsay to meet the growing need.
Year over year, more people are losing the ability to pay for basic needs, including food and groceries, which is why KLFS is committed to upholding FBC’s standards to ensure member agencies and the community at large can have confidence in the organization to serve the community and treat clients with dignity and respect. This framework will provide KLFS with even more opportunities in the future to learn and improve, guided by a unified mission to end hunger.
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About Kawartha Lakes Food Source
Kawartha Lakes Food Source is a non-profit distribution organization that procures and distributes food to 35 agencies, advocates for food security and poverty related issues, and collaborates with the community to support those who do not have enough. We are located at 164 Needham St, Lindsay.
www.kawarthalakesfoodsource.com
About Food Banks Canada
Food Banks Canada supports a network of 10 Provincial Associations and 5,100 hunger relief organizations in every province and territory, providing national leadership to relieve hunger today and prevent hunger tomorrow.
https://foodbankscanada.ca