Over the past year, Earthwise Society has been hard at work, along with a team of dedicated individuals and organizations, to help rescue healthy food and put it on the tables of those in need.
The COVID-19 pandemic had a dramatic impact on local food security, affecting the lives and livelihoods of countless local families. Hundreds of people across Delta lack access to nutritious and affordable food, yet sadly, tonnes of edible food ends up in the landfill on a daily basis.
Earthwise Society is the lead agency for the Delta Food Coalition (DFC), a network of community groups collaborating to address local food security issues and decrease food waste by pooling their resources. Last year, Earthwise Society’s Harvest Box Program stepped up to provide emergency food relief in response to the pandemic, and Harvest Box has now become a key local food security program that will continue to make a difference in our community for years to come. Through this program, fresh and nutritious food is rescued from local homeowners, farms, and grocery stores, and delivered weekly to vulnerable people.
Pam Shaw, of the Crossroads United Church in North Delta, has seen firsthand the difference that Earthwise Harvest boxes are making. This season, Shaw made weekly deliveries to eight households in North Delta. She noted that the produce was always fresh and displayed beautifully, and families appreciated the attached newsletters, complete with recipes and nutrition tips.
“Earthwise does an excellent job of coordinating with the growers and organizing the distribution,” said Shaw. “Getting healthy food into people’s fridges and helping them stretch their budgets makes good common sense. The households I delivered to really appreciated those Friday drop-offs of fresh, local food.”
This summer, Earthwise Society’s goal was to deliver 400 boxes to needy families, and with the support of DFC and the United Way of the Lower Mainland, they have well exceeded that goal.
According to Vivian Chung, Food Security Coordinator at Earthwise Society, one of this year’s biggest highlights has been the overwhelming amount of community support that Earthwise and the Harvest Box Program has received.
“We got lots of donations from local farms and community members, and had many amazing volunteers-including over a dozen new volunteers- help with fruit gleaning, prep and delivery,” said Chung. “Without them, we definitely would not have been able to get out as many boxes as we did this season. It's been great seeing how much the program has grown this year!”
Earthwise also wishes to thank its Victory Gardeners, who have grown produce at home and shared their harvest, and to the Don't Mow Grow families who have worked with Earthwise to transform parts of their land into productive food gardens.
For the Christmas season, Earthwise Society is proud to be providing vulnerable individuals and families with special Holiday Harvest Boxes full of fresh local seasonal veggies. If you would like to make a tangible difference to a local family this year, a $25 donation will sponsor one harvest box.
Achieving food security is truly a community effort.
To find out how you can help Earthwise connect more people with food, to learn more about the DFC, or to sponsor a Harvest Box, please contact [email protected].
