Alberta food banks grapple with high cost of free beef

There's no shortage of beef in southern Alberta, but food banks around Lethbridge are looking for help to cover the cost of processing donated cattle into meat they can distribute to clients.

Counties across the province this week supported a call for the Alberta government to renew a short-lived 2014 pilot program that covered the associated costs of cutting, inspecting and packaging thousands of packages of hamburgers distributed to food bank clients.

In a provincial pilot project to develop a business case for the model, Lethbridge ranchers delivered 130 animals, resulting in nearly 17,700 kilograms of ground beef for four food banks in southwest Alberta.

After funding dried up, the Lethbridge Interfaith Food Banking Society continued to accept livestock from ranchers through local butchers, paying for them with their own money.

The organization is now looking to increase livestock donations to circumvent the problem. high prices for beefbut officials say adding cash spending at a time of record demand could strain budgets.

“We piloted the project for two years, and lo and behold, it works,” said Danielle McIntyre, manager of the food bank.

Her agency is seeking corporate sponsors and reaching out to the farming community to “get the word out that yes, this program is still here.” Last year, cattle producers only donated 12 cows to the Lethbridge Food Bank.

And, she said, the current program relies entirely on cash donations to cover the cost of processing the animals — $600 to $800 per cow. It's a good deal compared to buying the same amount of meat in bulk, but it's still “a struggle for us,” McIntyre said.

A similar beef donation program in Medicine Hat, sponsored by the city's Kinsmen Club, spent about $10,000 last year processing about $30,000 worth of ground beef for the Root Cellar Food and Wellness Hub.

Ranchers agree, but want more support

“I think a lot of farmers are happy to help where they can, but if you can offset some of the processing costs, it makes it a little more affordable,” said Ryan Kasko, who donated cattle from his feedlot near Lethbridge.

He estimates that donating a premium animal could cost up to $5,000. This amounts to a tax-deductible gift, but he said the law addresses the charitable nature of agricultural producers and promotes community development.

This is not without its benefits for ranchers.

Donating livestock helps Andrea Streve-Sava manage her herd, reduces feeding costs and prevents meat from being wasted. She notes that ranchers may have an animal that doesn't perform well or won't bring much money at auction.

Stroeve-Sava owns a ranch near the town of Taber and has supported the Taber Food Bank with money and livestock for many years.

“I strongly believe in providing quality protein to people in our community,” she said.

“The simplest thing is to donate the animal, but to cut it up, wrap it and give it to the consumer — even if the consumer is at a food bank… that comes at a cost,” she said.

“Anything that could offset the processing costs would obviously be a big help.”

The province says there is no funding for the request.

Tamara Miyanaga, Taber Municipal District Manager and Taber Food Bank volunteer, can sympathize. This month, she led a resolution at the Alberta Conference of Rural Municipalities asking for new provincial money to offset the cost of receiving free beef.

“When we see the donor's willingness and inability to cut, wrap and provide a stable source of protein, we will approach the government,” she said.

Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation officials told CBC News there is currently no program to fund the request. He pointed to grants available to food banks as well as $5 million in ongoing food security funding.

However, McIntyre, of Lethbridge, hopes to “get to the point where food banks will always have the money to process these animals whenever they are offered.”