Winnipeg Harvest changes hamper procedures due to COVID-19 pandemic The money for the food — a large portion of which is high-protein meats such as bison, turkey, veal, fish and seafood — is coming from the Government of Canada Surplus Food Grant Program.The program is a dual benefit for both food producers and those needing assistance since the money is earmarked for excess food, which otherwise may have gone to waste, explains Kirstin Beardsley with Food Banks Canada.“We know the supply chain was affected by the pandemic; there were industries that saw excess that they couldn’t sell because the restaurants shut down, hospitality shut down, so there was these excesses in the system,” Beardsley said.