Update:

CTV News has learned that a car dealership in the Chelmsford community of Greater Sudbury stepped up to help the food bank get the van back on the road.

Belanger Ford has repaired the van and it is now back on the road.

Original: 

Who would do it, especially to a food bank?

Someone went to great lengths to steal a part from Sudbury Food Bank’s delivery van.

The vehicle is used by the organization to pick up and deliver donations.

Now, with over $5,000 in damage to the vehicle, and hundreds of pounds of food wasted, the busy organization is strapped for a way to get its work done.  

There's isn't a person in Sudbury who hates seeing food go to waste more than Dan Xilon. He is the executive director for the food bank.

"We've already lost 2,000 pounds yesterday and approximately 1,500 pounds today." said Xilon.

And all because the organization’s refrigerated van, the only one in the fleet, won't start.

“No more fresh fruit. No more fresh vegetables. No more dairy. No more nothing like that until we get it fixed.” said Xilon.

And it gets worse.

The vehicle didn't just break down, someone deliberately tampered with it.

And Xilon says this has definitely taken food out of hungry people’s mouths.

“The people who are hungry in our community, who are now going to be suffering unnecessarily for the next two weeks because whoever you are out there needed a few bucks in your pocket." said Xilon.

This wasn't an act of vandalism. It's not like someone slashed the tires.

This was a theft. And whoever did it actually had to crawl underneath the van and using a power saw, cut out an essential piece of the vehicle's exhaust system, something called a catalytic converter.

And it turns out; this part is a frequent target for thieves.

“They're after the precious metals because they are in demand. We get upwards of $100 to $200 for some of them." said Patrick Robichaud of Lorne Auto Repair.

And according to him it's a pretty easy job to pull.

"And they're non-traceable, so there's no VIN (vehicle identification number), no nothing. So, they can slide underneath, quickly cut them out. If they've got a good saw and a good blade, five minutes and then they're gone." said Robichaud.

And while a thief can pocket a cool hundred bucks, fixing the damage costs a whole lot more.

“Right now, the estimated damage to the vehicle, including the missing part is $4,500." said Kaitlynn Dunn, of Greater Sudbury Police Service.

Meanwhile, the charitable organization remains hopeful and optimistic.

"We'll come up with the money somewhere. Maybe we'll get lucky and somebody will graciously volunteer to do it." said Xilon.

And hopefully it will happen fast because the food bank has plenty of mouths to feed as it heads into its busiest time of year.

The food bank said Thursday that thanks to some generosity within the community, the van should be fixed and back out delivering food by Friday or early next week.