A charity dedicated to redistributing food that would otherwise go to landfills is facing significant challenges following a major act of vandalism during the Thanksgiving long weekend. The Second Harvest Etobicoke facility was targeted, with suspects cutting through security fencing and using power tools to steal diesel components from seven different trucks. This incident has left half of their delivery fleet inoperable at one of the year's busiest times, potentially costing the charity tens of thousands of dollars in repairs and operational delays.
Duncan Salisbury, the Vice-President of Supply Chain & Logistics at Second Harvest, indicated that the estimated repairs for each vehicle could be around $10,000. Additionally, the charity will need to rent vehicles to compensate for the loss, and possibly engage third-party carriers to transport food that they can no longer pick up. Altogether, the charity anticipates that total costs could reach as high as $100,000.
According to security footage obtained by local news, there are at least two suspects involved in the vandalism. Salisbury expressed deep concern over the impact of this act, particularly during a holiday when many families rely on Second Harvest for food deliveries. "We’re a charity, we’re not for profit. One hundred thousand dollars to us is a lot,” he emphasized, urging anyone who wishes to help the organization to consider donating through their website, secondharvest.ca.
Salisbury described the timing of the vandalism as “outrageous,” noting that the charity was expected to deliver essential food supplies the following Tuesday. Despite the severe setbacks, Second Harvest staff managed to fulfill scheduled deliveries for Sunday with the reduced fleet. However, they are now urgently working to reorganize delivery routes for Tuesday while scouting for rental trucks and hiring third-party logistics providers to assist in their mission.
“We’re going to have to get very creative in what we deliver, when we deliver it, and how we deliver it,” Salisbury said, expressing confidence in the team’s commitment to the organization’s mission. He appreciates the collaborative spirit among staff members who are determined to find solutions amid the disruption caused by this incident.
This is not the first time the Second Harvest facility in Etobicoke has been subject to vandalism. In January, an incident occurred where water was poured into the gas tanks of at least four of their trucks. Salisbury mentioned that it was in response to such incidents that they had installed the security fencing, which was ultimately damaged in the latest act of vandalism.
