Downtown Windsor Farmers' Market launches food reclamation program

In just two weeks, over 950 pounds of fresh produce was donated to downtown organizations through the new Good Greens Food Reclamation program.

Good Greens was launched with a $20,000 grant from the Libro Credit Union.

As part of the program, farmers at the Downtown Windsor Farmers Market (DWFM) can sell their excess produce to the program at cost. That food is then donated to the Downtown Mission, the Welcome Centre Shelter for Women and Families, the Salvation Army and the Downtown Windsor Community Collaborative.

"The need is there, the produce is there, and the willingness of the community to fund a program like that is more than there. We're meeting a need that everybody knows about," said DWFM General Manager Steve Green.

Green said the initiative not only supports local businesses but also diverts food waste.

"One of the things that we have to be careful about is that we just don't continually ask for free food all the time. Farmers have costs too, their costs never go down they always go up," said Green

In just two weeks, the produce has had a significant impact on those facing food insecurity in the downtown area.

"It's been fantastic to get fresh produce that is at its best. Because we do pick up seconds and whatnot but this is fresh produce at its best that they have access to whenever. So it's been an added bonus to our food bank," said Laurie Musson, director of food services at the Downtown Mission.

The mission serves around 300 meals daily and around 2,200 individuals use the food bank on a monthly basis.

The program will run until the end of October when the Farmer's Market closes for the season. It will start again when the market opens in April and run until at least June.