Taking a can-do approach to beating hunger

The Festival of Children Foundation honored the winners Friday of the Canstruction Orange County event at South Coast Plaza.

Canstruction Orange County is a design/build competition using canned food as “bricks.” The cans are then donated to the Orange County Food Bank.

A beach-themed woodie and surfboard called “California Dreamin’ of an End to World Hunger,” won the Jurors’ Favorite while a can-made Baymax from “Big Hero 6” called “Lend A Helping Hand — One Can at a Time” was given the People’s Choice Award and also won Structural Ingenuity and Most Cans. A big-toothed shark structure called “Food for Friends” won for Best Meal.

The event is held during September as part of the Festival of Children in conjunction with National Child Awareness Month at South Coast Plaza, and is also hosted by ARTIC in Anaheim.

Canstruction Orange County is expected to collect approximately 90,000 cans of food for the food bank this year. The competition is part of a national campaign to promote food donations. Canstruction has contributed over 30 million pounds of food to community food banks since 1992, according to a news release

—Alicia Lopez