VANCOUVER—While millions of dollars worth of unsold fresh food ends up in landfills across Canada, food banks and supermarkets are teaming up to get more perishable food into the hands of those who need it most, avoiding harmful waste.
In Quebec, a supermarket food recovery program was launched in 2013 to tackle the rise in demand at food banks in the province and the massive amounts of food rotting in local landfills. Officials in the province said last year that the project, dubbed the first of its kind in Canada, had 177 supermarkets on board donating 2.5 million kilograms of food. It is set to expand further this year.
“The fascinating thing about what’s happening in Montreal and Quebec, and even in all of Canada, is there is enough surplus food to feed everybody,” said Sam Watts, the chief executive officer of Welcome Hall Mission, a large food bank in Montreal.
“There’s no problem with food—the challenge is building the partnerships, managing the supply chain, and getting distribution together in a way that is both dignified and safe.”
The province of Quebec, which chipped in with a $400,000 grant to help with transportation costs, said the ultimate goal is to reduce food waste by 8 million kilograms.
