“I’m just hungry.” Toronto man vows to eat 14-year-old can of soup in hopes of raising $ 10,000 for local food bank

The Parkdale Community Food Bank is drawing attention on social media following an interesting “soup” fundraising initiative after donating a 14-year-old soup.

In an Instagram post published Wednesday, the food bank announced that one of its community members has volunteered to eat a can of President’s Choice Chicken with Egg Noodle soup since 2006 if people donate $ 10,000 by November 25.

“We posted the 2006 can on our Instagram story to let our community know not to donate items that are no longer safe for consumption.” said Kitty Raman Costa, Operations Manager at Parkdale Community Food Bank. “One of our amazing community members, Oliver O’Brien sent me a direct message and let me know he’d eat soup if our community got together and raised $ 10,000.”

In preparation for what can potentially become a soupy mess, O’Brien says his training regimen was “rigorous and relentless,” ingesting samples of expired canned food, making bicep curls of Campbell’s chunky soup, and meditating in front of him. to a box of Andy Warhol soup painting.

“Do I want 15 minutes of fame based on eating soup that was approaching legal driving age?” Oliver O’Brien wrote in an email to The Star. “The problem with food is that most people agree that they would prefer to consume it before it passes its expiration date, including Parkdale Community Food Bank customers. Just because someone has trouble getting food doesn’t mean they deserve to be given something no one else wants to eat. “

People can donate money and comment on the Instagram post, both to encourage O’Brien to eat the expired soup, and to save him from the challenge.

“This is huge for an organization like ours that does not receive substantial state funding,” says Raman Costa. As of Saturday, nearly $ 5,000 has been raised in total, with the majority of people donating to encourage O’Brien to eat the old soup.

Asked what would happen if O’Brien was saved from eating the soup can, she says the food bank can’t control his choice, but “he could still eat the soup if he’s hungry.”

It is unclear where the donation came from, although the food bank said it received expired items, the oldest being a packet of jelly from 1997.

“If you wish to donate some non-perishable goods, consider this: Would you eat it yourself?” O’Brien adds.

A recent report found that Toronto-area food banks saw an increase in usage over the summer due to economic instability. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of food banks had already increased by 5% from last year, with nearly one million visits to Toronto.

According to O’Brien, the Parkdale Community Food Bank with a small staff of four reported a 30% increase in utilization over the course of the pandemic. GTA food bank numbers are also expected to rise as the province breaks daily records of COVI19 cases and Toronto closes on Monday.

In addition to raising money in this rather creepy fundraiser, the food bank is also hosting a toy collection from November 23 to December 13. Unwrapped toys can be dropped off at Roncesvalles United Church near Roncesvalles and Wright Avenue, Monday through Thursday. from 9:30 to 15:00, on Fridays from 9:30 to 12:00 and on Sundays from 12:00 to 15:00