Okanagan-Shuswap eateries to help beef up local food banks

A Salmon Arm restaurant is one of nearly 250 across the country helping to beef up Canadian food banks. 

Beef Canada just announced its third annual Burger It Forward campaign to address increasing food insecurity and raise funds for food banks while also supporting local restaurants, including the Barley Station Brew Pub.

Restaurants participating in the campaign, which runs from Feb. 1 to 28, will feature a special burger, and for every one purchased, Canada Beef will donate the equivalent of one meal to Food Banks Canada based on its meal metric of $1 = two meals. Additionally, provincial cattle associations and partners will contribute by making donations of ground beef or cash to regional food banks.

"The need for food banks has nearly doubled in only five years, and one in four Canadians are living in food insecure households," Joyce Parslow, executive director of consumer marketing at Canada Beef, said in a media release. "When donations drop, Food Banks Canada still continues to help, so Canada Beef is proud to host Burger It Forward again this year to help support this very important effort and organization." 

For its feature burger, the Barley Station â€“ Salmon Arm's only participating restaurant – is presenting the All Aboard Station Burger. The juicy stack consists of a 100 per cent Canadian beef patty with white cheddar, maple bacon, crispy jalapeños, garlic mayonnaise, haskap barbecue sauce, Forty Creek (whisky) sauce and arugula on a brioche bun topped with a beer-battered deep fried pickle.

"By simply dining at a local restaurant and ordering a Burger It Forward burger, Canadians will be helping their communities in a meaningful, tangible way," Parslow added. 

Food Banks Canada reports that use is at its highest in history, and this month alone there will be over two million visits to food banks, with 700,000 of those being children. Last year nearly 30 per cent of food banks ran out of before they were able to meet demand. 

"Burger It Forward takes a simple approach to supporting these food banks," the release reads. "Making the campaign accessible to both restaurateurs and consumers who want to help."

A list of all participating restaurants can be found online at burgeritforward.ca, which includes other Okanagan locations and burger descriptions. 

Â鶹¾«Ñ¡:

• Bernie's – Bernie's Burger 

• BNA Burger – Single Smash Burger

• Kelly O'Bryan's – The Slàinte Burger

• Skinny Duke's Glorious Emporium – Smash Burger

• Snowshoe Sam's – Double Smash Burger

&²Ô²ú²õ±è;• West Â鶹¾«Ñ¡/Vernon Kelly O'Bryan's – Guiness Burger

Vernon: 

• Match Eatery & Public House

• Silverstar Brewing Co. – Silverstar Craft Burger

• Roster Sports Bar – Vipers Smash Burger

• Lumby's Jitter Beans – Monashee Burger

Penticton:

• Barley Mill Brew Pub – The Barley Burger