BDO Raises Over 560,000 lbs for Food Banks Across Canada

TORONTO, Nov. 7, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- From a dunk tank in Salmon Arm, British Columbia to a barbeque in St. John's, Newfoundland, BDO offices coast to coast hosted a variety of community events this fall to raise awareness of hunger in Canada and collect donations for those in need.

The concept for the campaign originated in 2004 when a Farm Credit Canada employee drove an open-cab tractor trailer around Ontario for eight days to collect almost 60,000 lbs of food. The campaign has since grown to become the largest employee-led food drive in Canada. The tractor trailer now visits six provinces and spans nationwide, with 100% of donations directly benefiting local charities.

"With offices located in small towns and large cities across the country, hunger is a cause that resonates with all of our employees," stated CEO Keith Farlinger. "Thanks to the hard work of our people and the generosity of our communities, we are proud to have made a difference in over 100 communities across Canada and look forward to our continued partnership with FCC."

This year the FCC Drive Away Hunger campaign saw a record level of participation and collected over five million lbs of food for food banks in Canada. BDO has been a proud partner of campaign for seven consecutive years and has donated over 2.1 million lbs of food to date. Since its inception in 2004, FCC has raised over 22 million lbs of food through its Drive Away Hunger campaign. According to Food Banks Canada, over 850,000 Canadians rely on food banks each month – many of whom are children.

For full stories on BDO's FCC Drive Away Hunger events in your community, please visit www.bdo.ca/DAH.

About BDO

BDO is one of the leading accounting and advisory firms in Canada with our strengths firmly rooted in the communities we serve. Our professionals combine personalized, local advice and service with national resources and experience. As a member firm of the international BDO network, we also have access to advisors around the globe with over 1,000 offices in more than 100 countries.
BDO Canada LLP, a Canadian limited liability partnership, is a member of BDO International Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, and forms part of the international BDO network of independent member firms.

BDO is the brand name for the BDO network and for each of the BDO Member Firms.
 
About FCC

FCC is Canada's leading agriculture lender, with a healthy portfolio of more than $26 billion and 20 consecutive years of portfolio growth. FCC is strong and stable – committed to serving the industry through all cycles, and to being socially and environmentally responsible. FCC provides financing, insurance, software, learning programs and other business services to producers, agribusinesses and agri-food operations. Employees understand agriculture and are committed to the success of customers and the industry. With FCC in the market, producers benefit, agriculture benefits, rural Canada benefits and so do all Canadians.

For more information, visit fcc.ca. Follow Farm Credit Canada on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter @FCCagriculture.