Our partnership with Metro is helping us make food more accessible to communities across the province. Over the last year as food bank visits continued to rise, Metro’s dedication allowed us to provide more fresh, healthy food to people and families facing hunger and strengthened our network’s ability to meet the unique needs of their communities.
Not only does Metro connect local stores and food banks through our One More Bite program, providing over 3 million pounds of food to those in need, they’re also supporting the creation of community kitchens at food banks across Ontario.
Through Metro’s Shared Kitchens initiative, they’ve made significant investments in food banks in our network. With Metro’s support, four new community kitchens were opened at food banks in Renfrew, Orillia, Thunder Bay, and Oakville. These spaces support culinary programming, professional training opportunities, community outreach, and food rescue innovation, all while creating welcoming places for people to connect, learn, and enjoy healthy food together.
The Shared Kitchens
Soup being prepared at Renfrew District Food Bank’s new Metro’s Shared Kitchen.
At Renfrew District Food Bank, the Shared Kitchen will turn donated groceries into meals for the food bank, providing an additional 1,000 to 2,000 meals to those in need in the region. Located at Renfrew Collegiate Institute, the kitchen will help extend the reach of the food bank and will act as a community hub for food rescue innovation.
In addition to creating healthy meals for those in need, The Sharing Place in Orillia will use their Shared Kitchen space to host culinary education workshops and collective cooking groups, creating a space of connection and opportunity. The project allowed the food bank to upgrade their kitchen’s refrigeration and storage capacity and bring on a dedicated staff member to facilitate the spaces’ operations.
Feed Ontario CEO Carolyn Stewart at the grand opening of the new Metro’s Shared Kitchen at The Sharing Place Orillia.
The Shared Kitchen at Kerr Street Mission in Oakville will support prepared meals, youth and seniors programming, and partnerships with local groups that are all aimed at fostering connection and belonging through food. The project will improve efficiency and increase the capacity of the space, helping Kerr Street Mission to serve more people while expanding programming such as healthy cooking classes and shared meals.
With upgraded commercial grade equipment, expanded refrigeration and storage, and webcasting technology, the Regional Food Distribution Association (RFDA) in Thunder Bay will be able to offer more cooking and nutrition workshops, cultural programming, and employment readiness training with their new Shared Kitchen. The enhanced kitchen will also increase the production and distribution of nutritious, precooked meals that the RFDA prepares for the community five days a week.
The RFDA recently welcomed food bankers from across the province into their new Metro’s Shared Kitchen at our conference in Thunder Bay.
Over the next three years, Metro will continue supporting the expansion of Shared Kitchens across Ontario, helping food banks strengthen their capacity to respond to local needs, increase access to healthy prepared food, and build stronger community connections.
When food bank visits went up, our partners responded
Our work is made possible through the incredible dedication of our donors and partners like Metro, who have truly shown what generosity looks like over the last year. Because of them we’ve been able to distribute more food than ever before, extend our network’s reach, and respond quickly when it mattered most.
While the need for food banks remains high, so does the opportunity to make a difference. By working together, we can continue to build stronger partnerships, expand programs, and create communities where everyone has access to the healthy food and support they needed.
To find out more about the ways our partners stepped up to help us make sure food banks have the resources they need to serve their community, read our 2025-2026 Impact Report.