Thirteen percent of Canadians experience food insecurity, meaning they lack reliable access to adequate and nutritious food. Over 850,000 people in Canada rely on food banks each month, including over one-third who are children or youth. People who use food banks come from all backgrounds and include families, low-income workers, people on social assistance, and seniors and people with disabilities living on fixed incomes.

1. Thirteen percent of Canadians live
in a state of food insecurity, which
means they do not have reliable
access to adequate amounts of safe,
good-quality, nutritious food.
Each month, over 850,000 people
turn to food banks for help; more
than one-third are children and
youth.
The people who visit food banks come
from all backgrounds: families with
children, employed people whose low
wages do not cover basic living
essentials, individuals on social
assistance, and Canadians living on a
fixed income, including seniors and
people with disabilities.
About Janis…
Real Meals
You don’t need
money to eat well
Janis Warren has over 15 years experience as a
public speaker, life skills facilitator, and residential
and community support worker. But, it is her life
experience that spurned her to begin Real Meals.
As someone who has used food banks, Janis
recognized the need to supplement what she
received with additional items that she sourced from
local agencies and resources. Real Meals teaches
people that eating well doesn’t need to cost a lot and
with support anyone can make healthy meals.
Contact Real Meals
Email:
janiwarren2003@gmail.com
Phone:
647-347-3408
Did you Know?
Source: Food Banks Canada

2.  Participants receive a FREE meal that
they can eat during the presentation.
 All recipes are compiled and saved in a
recipe book which is handed out to
clients at the end of the session for
their future and ongoing use.
 Reviewing recipes and meal
preparation compliments many of the
skills that participants were learning,
such as reading, following directions,
and applying math skills.
 Classes include enough time for
learning, food preparation, food
tasting, clean-up, and class wrap-up
and are held at locations where the
clients feel safe.
 Knowledge of healthy food and
nutrition can be an important part of
helping to prevent and reduce obesity
and other health risks.
 Classes are taught by someone who
has used food banks and understands
the stigmas and realities faced
firsthand.
Participant
Benefits:
The goal of Real Meals is to teach
food bank users how to prepare easy,
healthy, and low-cost meals for their
families. We trade tips on how to find
food beyond the food bank and how to
make found food taste great.
-
TESTIMONIALS
“I can’t think of anything that needs to
be added to this presentation. Janis has
a gentle, commanding presence and is
very through about the resources
around her”
“I feel better about cooking now that I
know more ways to do it and store it.”
“Really good food. When I looked at the
packages I couldn’t think it would be
this good.”
Let’s face it – there are a lot of
cooking/budgeting and wellness
programs out there. Why does
“Real Meals” stand out?
• We bring the program to your
location, and make it specific to the
needs of your client group
• We take food from the food bank and
fortify it with produce and other
sources of food found through
resources in the local catchment
area.
• We prepare a free meal for all
participants , hand out recipes and
discuss healthy food benefits.
• We provide a one hour interactive
presentation where we discuss with
participants where the food was
sourced, how it was prepared and
facilitate discussion on tips, sources
of food, storage and personal
challenges and achievements.
What We Offer: