4-H in Western Canada

Save-On-Foods is excited to partner with the 4-H programs in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba to help connect young leaders of tomorrow with 4-H youth clubs in hundreds of communities.

“We are proud to support 4-H in its mission to develop the next generation of Canadian leaders by helping them connect with more of their neighbours in our stores from B.C. to Manitoba,” said Save-On-Foods president Darrell Jones. “Supporting local has always been important to Save-On-Foods, and we are thrilled to help 4-H get its program in urban centres through the support of our stores.”

4-H in Western Canada has hundreds of clubs registered in B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba, and holds a combined membership of over 13,000 members.

“We are extremely excited about all the possibilities that come with this new Western Canadian partnership and the opportunity to work with our colleagues in 4-H in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. What a great way to facilitate the engagement and empowerment of our youth members,” stated Aleda Welch, manager of 4-H BC. “Save-On-Foods is committed to supporting local businesses, farmers, and ranchers, and together, we are dedicated to growing the next generation of business and community leaders. On behalf of my 4-H colleagues and partners in Western Canada, I am proud to announce how pleased we are to join in this generous partnership with Save-On-Foods and that we look forward to giving back to communities across Western Canada.”

Save-On-Foods will support 4-H communities in Western Canada through a variety of funding, engagement, and activation opportunities throughout the duration of their partnership.

* image courtesy 4-H Canada

Children’s Hospitals

For decades, Save-On-Foods as a corporation has supported children’s hospitals in B.C. and Alberta, and has donated more than $30 million on behalf of generous team members, customers and supplier partners in the process.

Since Save-On-Foods expanded into Saskatchewan and Manitoba, the company has formed new partnerships with the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation in Saskatoon, Sask., slated to open later this year, and the Children’s Hospital Foundation of Manitoba in Winnipeg.

In more than 30 years of fundraising for children’s hospitals, the company has donated more than $30 million.

Three times a year, Save-On-Foods stores participate in a two-week Round Up for Kids campaign, where customers can round up their bill to the nearest dollar and donate the difference to the children’s hospital in their community. In the latest Round Up for Kids, from March 14-27, 2019, Save- On-Foods raised $388,259—the highest two-week total ever.

In addition to store-driven fundraisers, Save-On-Foods participates in Jeans Day, where those who donate to BC Children’s Hospital can dress casually on a Thursday, and Miracle Weekend, the annual telethon for BC Children’s Hospital that celebrates team members’ contributions to child health throughout the year.

Toonies for Tummies

2019 was a record-breaking year for Toonies for Tummies — a campaign that helps feed hungry children healthy breakfasts and mid-morning snacks while at school. Over $1.5M was raised through shopper donations in Western Canada and in Ontario, including at participating Save-On-Food stores. Save-On-Foods shoppers’ contributed close to $300,000 of that during this year’s campaign — a true sign of the importance of this cause to our shoppers, team members and the many communities where we operate. Over the past three years, our colleagues and store teams have raised over $637,000 — that’s over 300,000 meals benefitting hungry children in our communities!

Emergency Response and Disaster Relief

The wildfire season in British Columbia continues to represent some of the most devastating impacts of climate change in our communities. Access to food during an emergency is critical. Over the past decade, Save-on-Foods has grown its capacity and expertise in emergency response and disaster relief and is a proud partner with the Government of British Columbia in their efforts to ensure that everyone has access to groceries when they have lost so much.

When an emergency happens, we first and foremost focus on caring for the communities that are directly affected. During wildfire season, Save-On-Foods acts as the primary food and distribution partner for disaster relief efforts in British Columbia and in other provinces when needed.

Along with various sectors, levels of government and community leaders, some of the work we are committed to include:

• Immediate triage support, followed by long-term support and response efforts to help establish stability and healthy communities
• Food and supply support to first responders
• Food and supply support to displaced families and neighbours through food banks and other relief agencies, sometimes as a distribution partner and other times mobilizing fundraising efforts for this important work

Emergency BC Support Network

Save-On-Foods is a founding partner of Emergency BC Support Network. In this work we develop the necessary skills and best practices to help people better prepare and, when needed, respond to emergencies.

I Can for Kids

We are passionate about caring for child health, nutrition and doing what’s right for and with the communities they serve. For that reason, Save-On-Foods was I Can for Kids’ first partner, and for the past five years we’ve helped them grow an idea into a thriving organization that feeds thousands of kids in Calgary every summer.

Save-On-Foods is thrilled to assist the I Can for Kids Foundation in their effort to end summer childhood hunger in Calgary. Going hungry shouldn’t be a way of life for kids, and I Can For Kids is a way for children and youth to get the nourishment they need to learn, play and grow during the summer months, and set them up for success in the coming school year.

Adam’s Apples Foundation

Adam’s Apples Foundation was created to honour the legacy of Adam Hryhorchuk, who passed away from an accidental drug overdose at 22.

Adam struggled with drug addiction and mental health throughout his adolescence. At the same time, he had a very special quality: he was genuinely interested in every person he met. Adam gave a hand-up to kids who weren’t in sync with the crowd — he understood the impact of isolation.

What began in 2016 with a single bowl of apples strategically placed within a school to offer students a healthy snack, quickly evolved to become a key gathering place for students to connect, socialize and converse. 

From this ‘seed’ has grown comprehensive programming that holds the Apple Program at its core, while expanding to a mental health literacy program, developed in partnership with the University of British Columbia, designed to help students gain mental health knowledge and peer support competencies.

Today, Adam’s Apples Foundation operates in 27 schools and community centres in Burnaby, Delta, Richmond, Surrey, and Vancouver, with demand to expand the program throughout BC.

At the start of the 2019/20 school year, Save-On-Foods joined AAF as a partner, providing 100,000 apples — enough apples for one year for ALL schools.

Food Banks

In 2018, Save-On-Foods held its inaugural Share It Forward initiative, which brought together every Save-On-Foods store and both PriceSmart Foods to raise funds for Western Canadian food banks. The campaign saw 25 per cent of net proceeds from every Western Family product sold at Save-On- Foods and PriceSmart Foods set aside to support local food banks. A total of $550,000 has been raised since the first Share It Forward, with the funds donated to the food banks in the communities in which they were raised.

Each year, Save-On-Foods donates approximately $3 million in goods to food banks across Western Canada. Each store collects donations and gives those directly to their local food bank partner on a weekly basis. Team members at the stores also take it upon themselves to run food drives for their neighbours in need, and the donations they collect in these ad-hoc food drives are not even included in the corporately tracked $3 million in annual donations. These efforts include “Christmas in July” campaigns in different communities; Stuff-A Bus campaigns at Edmonton-area stores every year; the Kamloops Food Share program with local health authorities; North Vancouver’s Harvest Project; and the Campbell’s Help Hunger Disappear campaign, to name a few.

Corporately, Save-On-Foods collects and disperses approximately $400,000 per year in cash donations to food bank Share programs. These programs convert cash donations into credit for food banks to purchase their most-needed items at Save-On-Foods on a weekly basis. Save-On-Foods has supported Share programs since they began in the early 1990s.