Second Harvest Launches 100 Hour Race to Rescue 1 Million Meals Across Canada

Press Release

TORONTO, May 26, 2026  – One in four people in Canada do not know where their next meal is coming from. At the same time, 46.5 per cent of the food in this country goes to waste. On May 26, Second Harvest, the country’s largest food rescue organization, will work to close that gap: 100 ambassadors, posting simultaneously across social media over 100 hours, with a goal of raising enough funds to rescue 1 million meals by May 30.

The campaign, Race to Rescue, is bilingual and spans the country. Chefs, athletes, musicians, farmers, scientists, Indigenous leaders, content creators, an astronaut. The people Canadians watch, cook with, cheer for and follow, all saying yes at the same time. Each will direct their followers to a personal fundraising page tied to a single conversion: one dollar provides enough to rescue five meals.

The Problem

Canada wastes 8.83 million metric tonnes of edible food every year, enough to feed 17 million people three meals a day for a full year. That food isn’t spoiled. It’s surplus and only a fraction of it is ever rescued. Second Harvest is working to change that, capturing surplus food across the supply chain and redistributing it through thousands of non-profit partners across the country. Last year, Second Harvest rescued 95.3 million pounds of food, supporting 6.8 million individuals, served by a network of over 10,800 food programs, including food banks, shelters, school meal programs and Indigenous communities.

“Every single day, millions of pounds of good food go to waste, while millions of Canadians go without. We do not have a food shortage problem in this country, we have a food insecurity problem. Race to Rescue is our call to Canada: 100 hours, 100 voices, one national movement. This is the moment to be part of it,” said Lori Nikkel, CEO of Second Harvest.

How the Sprint Works

Beginning at 8 a.m. ET on May 26 and running until 12 p.m. ET on May 30, each ambassador will publish coordinated content directing their audiences to individual fundraising pages. A centralized platform tracks every dollar against the 1 million-meal goal in real time.

Ahead of the launch, actress Cobie Smulders is calling on her audience to follow Second Harvest, spotlighting the organization’s work in a personal message that gives the campaign its first public signal before the clock starts.

“There are families in every province throughout Canada who struggle with food insecurity, and somehow there’s a warehouse somewhere near them with perfectly good food about to be thrown out. That’s the disconnect Second Harvest is fixing. I’m so glad to bolster the amazing work they’re doing to support people throughout Canada,” said Cobie Smulders, Canadian actress and producer.

The Roster

Confirmed participants include Chris Hadfield, the first Canadian to walk in space; Shania Twain, five-time Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter; Mitch Marner, Vegas Golden Knights forward and Team Canada Olympian; Matty Matheson, chef and star of FX’s The Bear; Eric Robertson, two-Michelin-star chef at Pearl Morissette in Niagara; Autumn Peltier, Anishinaabe water activist; Aliya Jasmine, filmmaker and environmental journalist; Michelle Dubé, Canadian Screen Award-winning journalist and CTV news anchor; Zach Keeshig, owner of Naagan in Owen Sound; Liam Hickey, dual-sport Canadian Paralympian from Newfoundland; Tyler Heppell, fifth-generation BC potato farmer and creator of Ugly Potato Day; Arlene Dickinson, entrepreneur, bestselling author and Dragon on CBC’s Dragons’ Den; Manjit Minhas, Dragon on CBC’s Dragons’ Den; and Michele Romanow, tech entrepreneur, Clearco co-founder and Dragon on Dragons’ Den. The full 100-ambassador roster is available at secondharvest.ca/race-to-rescue.

“I know what it feels like to go to school without breakfast. That never fully leaves you. When Second Harvest asked me to join Race to Rescue, I didn’t have to think about it. I’ve seen what they do. They take perfectly good food that would end up in a landfill and get it to people who need it. One hundred ambassadors, 100 hours, 1 million meals. I’m all in, and I’d love for you to be part of it too,” said Shania Twain, Founder, the Shania Twain Foundation.

Food Rescue as Climate Action

Last year, Second Harvest’s operations kept an estimated 309 million pounds of greenhouse gas emissions out of the atmosphere, the equivalent of removing 42,953 vehicles from the road, and prevented 65 billion litres of water from going to waste. When surplus food ends up in landfills, it creates methane. Intercepting it before it gets there addresses hunger and emissions at the same time.

How to Participate

Beginning May 26, Canadians can follow participating ambassadors on social media and donate through individual fundraising pages. Every dollar enables Second Harvest to rescue enough food for five meals for someone in need. For more information or to donate, visit secondharvest.ca/race-to-rescue.

About Second Harvest

Second Harvest is Canada’s largest food rescue organization and a global thought leader on food waste and perishable food redistribution. It rescues unsold surplus food from thousands of food businesses from across the supply chain to redistribute it to non-profits in every province and territory. This prevents harmful greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere while improving access to nutrition for millions of Canadians experiencing food insecurity. Beyond food rescue and redistribution, Second Harvest is deeply involved in advocacy, research, training and education. Its groundbreaking reports, such as “The Avoidable Crisis of Food Waste,” provide critical data and insights to inform public policy and educate the public on sustainable food systems.

Second Harvest is committed to driving systemic change, helping to shape policies and practices that reduce food waste and address its role in climate change, while also supporting communities by providing them with the food they need.

Media Contacts: Vanessa Morcom, Morcom Media, vanessa@morcom.media; Katryna Szagala, Morcom Media, katryna@morcom.media

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