The executive director of the Saanich Peninsula Lions Food Bank welcomes donations to the organization but also reminds the public about the quality of the donations.
Bev Elder said the run-up to Saturday’s Peninsula Firefighters Christmas Food Drive generated a great response by way of donations, but that not all of the donations will find their way onto the plates of those who need them.
“We just had a gentleman drop off (three) boxes of very expired food,” she said.
Pictures submitted by Elder show several canned items with expiration dates in 2020, 2017, 2015, 2014, 2013 and 2012. One can had an expiration date of 1999, while one bottle of salad dressing had no date at all.
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“Do not give us garbage,” said Elder earlier in the month. While the Thanksgiving Food Drive in the fall yielded a total 22 pallets of food, volunteers disposed of the equivalent of seven pallets.
“If you won’t eat it, don’t give it to the food bank. It costs me (money) to throw it away, so you are not doing us any favours.”
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