Peter McKee Community Food Centre is 'more than a food bank'

Food bank will host a garden party July 21 to show how it is growing food and giving back to the community

Article content The Peter McKee Community Food Centre will host a garden party next week to show how fresh food is being grown to help clients. Christine Taylor, executive-director of Moncton’s largest food bank, said the garden party is a way to show the community the work that is being done at the food bank, which serves approximately 1,700 clients each month. The event is open to the public and will be held July 21 from 4 to 6 p.m. at the McKee centre, 475 St. George St. “The garden party is a chance for us to show people in the city that we are more than a food bank,” Taylor said.

“We have 118 garden beds now and it is made for people with disabilities with plenty of room for wheelchairs. It is in a gated environment and we offer seniors who live in low-income housing garden boxes to grow their own food. It’s also there for seniors who have moved out of their homes and still like to garden.

People can get their fingers in the dirt, see the fruit of their labour and get out and socialize with others.” The community garden is located inside the fenced parking lot of the centre, using wooden boxes to grow tomatoes, zucchini, lettuce, carrots, cucumbers and various herbs. The garden has expanded in recent years with a full-time garden co-ordinator, along with volunteers, and a greenhouse where they can start growing early in the year.

“When I started four years ago, I saw the garden as a bunch of grey boxes surrounded by the fence, and I saw the potential for it to become a pillar of the community for tranquil spaces and bringing people together,” Taylor said. Over time, they painted the boxes, added flowers and created a space where people could relax and relieve stress. Taylor said they expect to grow approximately 10,000 pounds of food this year, with some going directly to the food bank for clients and other produce going to the kitchen for processing.

“We want to make tomato sauces, zucchini bread, relishes and other products for our clients,” she said. The McKee Food Centre also has a Junior Chef Academy program for kids aged eight to 14 through the school year. The six-week program includes safe food handling and preparing various meals with desserts that they can take home.

“It brings kids from all different schools together to give them an opportunity to expand their social network outside of their own school,” she said. Taylor said the number of food bank clients continues to grow, especially families with children and seniors whose incomes are not keeping pace with the rising costs of rent, electricity and other essentials.