Working with community partners, the Windsor-Essex County Health Unit has launched a pilot project in two Leamington neighbourhoods to battle food insecurity.
The pilot will test two models of delivery at schools in the neighbourhoods. The first method is a weekly food hamper that requires advance registration. The second provides meal packages that can be picked up or sent home without prior registration.
"This just opens up bringing services to that school space instead of having families go out and try to find services in a community that they might not know very well," said Registered Dietician Karen Bellemore.
The pilot project has been operating for four weeks and will continue until December.
"Families are accessing the program which is something that we're really excited to see. That a school hub, after school hours, is looking like a good food access point that maybe traditionally might not have happened," said Bellemore.
After the full eight weeks, the health unit will evaluate how the program worked and whether it can be replicated in other school communities.
In May 2026, the health unit's annual Nutritious Food Basket report found that a family of four will spend $293.98 a week on healthy food, an eight per cent increase from 2025.
"When it comes to nutrition, consistent access to food is what makes your body feel safe," said Bellemore. "This gives an opportunity for somebody to get a portion of food, have some more consistent access to continue that nourishment. When our bodies are well nourished, we are able to fight off infections better; we are able to think, thrive and move, which helps overall health and wellbeing."
