Canadian Youth Put on Their Best Halloween Costumes For Meal Exchange’s ‘Trick or Eat’ Food Drive and Hunger Awareness Campaign

As Meal Exchange’s most successful program, Trick or Eat uses the one night of the year when households expect a knock on their door in order to address an issue of increasing concern to communities. Costumed youth canvass their neighbourhoods on Halloween collecting food for local social service agencies while raising awareness of the 2.4 million Canadians who suffer from hunger.

Last year, Trick or Eat involved over 3500 students from across the nation, raising $263,603 worth of food or 105,441 meals for Canadians in need. This year the goal is to raise $400,000 worth of food through canvassing and our online fundraising campaign. With support from UPS, the Co-operaators, MuchMusic, the Ontario Association of Food Banks and Canada World Youth, this goal is within reach.

“Trick or Eat continues to increase its impact in communities across Canada! I’m certain that 2007 will see more youth volunteering, more food donations collected, and increased awareness of local hunger. Students and community members are really responding to this easy and fun way to address hunger - three hours and a costume is all that is required to make a huge difference,” says Dave Kranenburg, Executive Director.

For additional information on Trick or Eat in your community visit www.trickoreat.ca.

About Meal Exchange:

Meal Exchange is a national student-founded, student-driven, registered charity that helps young Canadians realize their potential to improve the future of their communities, by providing them with meaningful opportunities to reduce local hunger today. Meal Exchange offers students in a national network of 40 universities and colleges, three fun, simple and creative programmes including Trick or Eat ®, Skip-A-Meal ® and Clear the Shelves! ® as well supporting their own initiative to address local hunger.

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