‘It’s incredible’, Calgary Food Bank overwhelmed by baby formula donation

Calgary’s youngest residents will be well taken care of after London Drugs’ FormulaWon campaign donated 5,600 units of baby formula, worth about $363,944.00, to the Calgary Food Bank.

“Babies are people; we feed people,” says Melissa From, president and CEO of the Calgary Food Bank. “This donation will last us about three months so it’s going to give us a really good kickstart to 2026.”

FormulaWon is a collaborative initiative between London Drugs, Good Start Canada, and the Calgary Food Bank. It was developed to close the gap in accessing infant nutrition.

“This donation is another example of how powerful collaboration can be when it comes to addressing the needs of our community,” said Clint Mahlman, President and COO of London Drugs. “By working together with Good Start Canada and the Calgary Food Bank, we’re helping ensure that babies from families facing food insecurity receive consistent, high-quality nutrition.”

Every six months, the Calgary Food Bank distributes more than 1,800 cans of Stage 1 formula to infants requiring assistance but demand continues to outpace supply.

“Formula is getting very expensive. It’s a great opportunity to partner with the food bank and give a great donation to help families,” says Ben Pullein, zone manager for London Drugs. “It feels pretty great to see what’s been donated through this program.”

“We are so excited about this partnership and we couldn’t be off to a better start,” says From.

Baby formula is one of the food bank’s most requested items; last year they distributed 40,000 units of baby formula.

A list of other items the Calgary Food Bank needs is available here.