Tuesday mornings can be a bit chaotic at the Mount Newton Cross Road parking lot that serves as a weekly produce pick-up spot for a Greater Victoria produce-distribution centre.
South Island Farm Hub deals with about 75 farms, ranging from half-acre farm operations and local seafood and meat producers to Central Saanich’s 165-acre Longview Farms, 91原创 Island’s largest certified organic vegetable farming operation.
From that parking lot, the produce is trucked to a warehouse in Esquimalt, where the food is distributed throughout the capital region.
Every week, a few produce boxes are set aside for the Farmbucks program, where charities and schools get to pay half-price for the products.
South Island Farm Hub picks up the rest of the tab, with help from funding partners such as the Times 91原创 Christmas Fund. (Farmers are paid in full for their product.)
The organization’s sales and marketing co-ordinator Heather Vandenengel said the causes and people served by the program vary widely.
Berryman Brothers meat products go into meals at Victoria’s Woman’s transition house. Produce is purchased for the monthly queer community dinner held at Oaklands Community Centre. Other food goes into school lunches at Esquimalt’s Rockheights Middle School and protein-rich food baskets for seniors who are being helped by staff at James Bay New Horizons, a non-profit activity and services centre.
Vandenengel said six capital region schools purchase discounted food through the Hub’s Farmbucks program for their culinary programs.
That gives students access to more varied ingredients and learning opportunities that would have otherwise been impossible to provide due to tight food budgets, she said.
Many charitable organizations providing meals in the capital region, such as the Mustard Seed, often use leftover or “rescued” food donated by grocery stores, Vandenengel said.
The quality can vary, and you don’t get to choose what you get, she said, but with the Farmbucks program, participating charities and schools can buy fresh local produce tailored to their needs.
Vandenengel said her organization’s philanthropic streak was in its DNA when it first began connecting area farms to local consumers in 2020.
“The original vision centred around Farmbucks and getting the produce to the people who needed it the most,” she said. “It’s always about the mission of good for all, and trying to figure out how to make that possible.”
Students at Royal Bay Secondary School, for example, learned how to butcher a full lamb that was purchased through the program.
One benefit of being located in a warmer climate is that the program runs year-round, she said. This month, there’s winter squash, turnips, green onions and “lots of hearty greens” still available, a pleasant surprise for Vandenengel, who is from the East Coast.
As food costs soar, more and more charitable organization are being waitlisted for the Farmbucks program, which requires a bare minimum of another $25,000 in donations to operate into 2025, she said.
Last year, the Times 91原创 Christmas Fund gave $30,000 to the program, which went a long way toward filling the funding gap, Vandenengel said.
The Times 91原创 Christmas Fund, which started in 1956, is one of the oldest Christmas-related charity efforts in British Columbia. Last year, the Christmas Fund distributed grants to 53 91原创 Island charities.
From Nov. 12 to Dec. 20, it has raised $858,018.25 from 2,690 donors, with a goal to match the $1.12 million donated last year.
HOW TO DONATE TO THE CHRISTMAS FUND
• Go online to . That page is linked to CanadaHelps, which is open 24 hours a day and provides an immediate tax receipt.
• Use your credit card by phoning 250-995-4438 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
• Cheques should be made out to the Times 91原创 Christmas Fund. Bring or mail your cheque to the Times 91原创, 201鈥�655 Tyee Rd., Victoria, B.C. V9A 6X5.
• Contact Maximum Express for free pickup and delivery of your cheque. Call dispatch at 250-721-3278 or email [email protected].
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