Food rescue store saves thousands of meals from landfill

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 02/11/2022 (1046 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Brandon Food Rescue Grocery Store and its partner organizations have saved 167,453 meals — valued at $441,685 — from the landfill since last November, according to data released this week.

As a result, the charity prevented 511,263 pounds of greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere by diverting food that would otherwise rot as garbage.

The overall analysis includes statistics from Everyone Eats Brandon, a pay-what-you-can pickup or delivery meal program that was based in Prairie Oasis Seniors’ Centre until the program ended in May.

The data, which was collected by national food rescue charity Second Harvest on behalf of the Brandon organization, indicated the majority of food rescued was produce, followed by prepared food, bread, condiments, other products and dairy.

The Brandon store, which is a joint project between the Brandon Food Council and the John Howard Society, collects foods that are nearing their expiry date or are unwanted and sells them for a reduced cost. The store itself, however, didn’t open until Dec. 15, 2021.

Since November 2021, the organization made 281 rescues and interacted with 11 businesses to co-ordinate pickups and distribution.

The analysis is proof that the project is doing good work beyond providing inexpensive food for the community, said Ross Robinson, president of the John Howard Society.

“It’s very gratifying to see,” he said. “It’s not just about providing low-cost food; it’s about saving stuff from being destroyed. That is truly why we are here, and the beautiful spinoff is the inexpensive food we provide the community, getting people employed and doing different things for the community based on this.”

Statistics for only the grocery store will be released next May.

Along with mass-produced products, Robinson said they see a lot of surplus seasonal produce from market gardens and Hutterite colonies.

“People grow things for the love of growing it. When someone put their love and heart into this, they don’t want to see it go back into the compost pile,” Robinson said. “They know this is going to contribute to somebody’s health and nutrition. We add that to what we have here and that provides balance and an inexpensive meal for their family. That’s what we are here for.”

Around 58 per cent of all food produced in Canada ends up being destroyed somewhere along the production and distribution line, according to Second Harvest’s website.

The store, however, gives food another outlet beyond the usual retail, Robinson said.

Originally located in the Blue Door Project in downtown Brandon, the shop moved to its current location at 719 Rosser Ave., last June because it needed to expand to meet growing demand.

The concept has been consistent: divert close-to-expiry, but still edible food to a location where it can be stored, affordably priced and easily distributed.

There have been a few challenges along the way, but Robinson said the support it’s received as a business and employer shows there is a real need for a food rescue program in the city.

Food security is an often-overlooked basic human need, Robinson said. From his observations at the John Howard Society, hunger can drive people to commit crimes like theft to get food or money to buy food. But once someone has access to nutritious and affordable food, they have one secure cornerstone they can rebuild their lives on.

There are plans to continue expanding the program. The Brandon Food Rescue Grocery Store receives federal funding and currently has three shipping containers at Transolutions trucking centre that will act as the project’s food warehouse once they are wired. Currently, they have limited cold storage space.

Those changes won’t affect how the store is run, but it will allow it to offer more variety and increase the stability of products.

The Brandon Food Rescue Grocery Store is open Thursday and Friday from 3 to 6 p.m., Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m.

» kmckinley@brandonsun.com, with files form The Brandon Sun

» Twitter: @karenleighmcki1