Volunteers help prep for a meal at The Mustard Seed. (Photo Courtesy Bob Schneider)

By Gates Guarin

Mustard Seed facing rising food costs amid increased demand

Sep 7, 2022 | 4:42 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The Medicine Hat Mustard Seed has been feeling the impact of inflationary costs, particularly with food prices. More and more people in Medicine Hat are taking advantage of what the organization has to offer, and continuing to provide a vital service to the community is beginning to pose a challenge.

The Mustard Seed typically sees 75 to 80 guests, on average, come through its doors every single day looking for a hot meal. That equates to roughly 200 pounds of food getting prepped, cooked and served on a regular basis. The amount of food needed for a growing population is now proving to be difficult.

The typical cost of a meal served at The Mustard Seed since its inception here in Medicine Hat cost $3.51. Suppliers increasing food costs in response to inflation have now caused the cost of a meal to jump to $5.38, a more than 53 per cent increase.

The Mustard Seed has been trying to keep up with both rising costs and increased demand in a variety of ways. Colette Erich, managing director, says groups in Medicine Hat, such as sports teams or church groups, are able to sponsor meals and volunteer their time in the kitchen or with serving, but the main way to help is through food donations.

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“Right now, we rely on gifts in-kind, food donations, whether it’s our local producers, whether it’s our local grocery stores, whether it’s farmers, all that, that’s what we rely on as our gift in-kind and food donations to produce a very nutritious, healthy meal, seven days a week,” Eirich says.

These food donations and gifts in-kind have steadily been decreasing. Eirich is encouraging the community to purchase gift cards at your local grocer to help support the local community at the same time. Eirich says this is due to a limited amount of storage and having gift cards allows them to purchase groceries at their own discretion.

Eirich does say any and all donations are welcome if community members want to go out and purchase their own groceries. A list of urgently needed items can be found on The Mustard Seed’s website.