TORONTO, Ont. — Schenker of Canada is launching its second annual food drive next week, after a highly successful effort last year. The company is launching its 2009 Nationwide Food Drive June 2 – which is also National Hunger Awareness Day – and will run the campaign through June 16.

Schenker of Canada will be placing food collection bins in each of its 40 offices across Canada. The company is urging its customers and suppliers to do the same. At the end of the food drive, company reps will collect the food bins for distribution to local food banks. Last year’s food drive saw the collection of more than 87,000 lbs of food.

“Hunger is a persistent and unacceptable problem in Canada, with more than 700,000 Canadians turning to community food banks for assistance each month,” says Katharine Schmidt, executive director of Food Banks Canada. “For every person using a food bank, it is estimated that three or four others are struggling to get the food they need.”

“In Canada, the problem of hunger is in large part a problem of income,” adds Gail Nyberg, executive director of Toronto’s Daily Bread Food Bank. “The growing prevalence of low paying, part-time and temporary jobs prevent some Canadians from having a chance to earn a living wage. Many low income working Canadians rely on emergency food assistance. That coupled with the downturn in our economy means we are seeing more and more people turning to food banks.”

“We’re urging our employees, customers, business partners – even our competitors – to help us work to reduce hunger in Canada,” says Claude Germain, executive vice-president and chief operating officer at Schenker of Canada. “Get involved. Together, we will make a difference.”

For information on how to get involved, call Schenker of Canada at 800-461-3686.