NORTH BATTLEFORD — Midwest Food Resources is finishing this year’s harvest with a bang as they donate more than 500 hills of potatoes to the Battlefords District Food and Resource Centre and the local emergency shelter along with a host of other vegetables, all from their community gardens.
Vesna Fa, executive director for Midwest Food Resources, is excited to offer most of their produce to local organizations before winter.
“We have Swiss chard, beets, carrots and lots of tomatoes in the greenhouse. Three Sisters corn, beans, squash, kale, lettuce, and spaghetti squash. Green, purple and yellow beans, beets, and lots of potatoes and cucumbers.”
All their pumpkins and squashes were donated to local organizations after their Fall Pumpkin Festival earlier in the month.
The organization has three gardens: one for community plots rented out to the public, one to support their fresh food box program and their stall at the farmers market, and one is almost entirely for donation. Fa is looking forward to next year’s harvest and is hoping to see an expansion of their community plots.
“There was just huge demand for the plots this year,” she said.
More than 100 asparagus crowns are planted for the spring, and Fa has left broad beans to dry for planting next year. Fa hopes that she and the organization can teach people to eat healthily and become more used to locally grown fresh fruits and vegetables. The organization partners with local producers and stores to continue their programming throughout the winter months.
