Our Operations

We focus our operations in the Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie neighbourhood within an 8km radius. Since our activities are concentrated in the immediate vicinity, our positive actions affect the local community directly. This way of doing things also allows us to minimize the environmental impact of our operations.

Sunday Pickup

Each Sunday, we pick-up unsold food items from our participating grocery stores and green grocers. Collecting unsold food at the end of the weekend means recuperating food items that would otherwise find their way in the garbage bins. We collect from various departments: meat, bakery, grocery (eggs, dairy products, dry items, etc.), fruits and vegetables, ready-to-eat.

Collection Points

Collection points are grocery stores and greengrocers in the Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie neighbourhood in Montreal where we collect unsold food on a weekly basis. By giving their unsold and still edible food items, merchants allow them to have a second life. Some are transformed into fruit spreads that some merchants resell, while others are redistributed to local organizations. Important players in the food system, food stores are progressively opening up to the idea of adopting this way of doing things as well as expressing their desire to improve their practice.

Collecting Data

After we have collected the food, we unload the truck and weight all the items. Meticulously collected, the data enables us to quantify the losses of each store and of each department in those stores. The data thus collected allows us to have a clear overview in real time of the waste avoided.

The data allows us to identify trends. This helps us better target our future interventions. It also serves to inform the community and our partners so that they can have a clear idea what kind of impact our actions have.

Sorting Unsold Food Items

When sorting the items, we put aside the fruits we want to transform, we put together what will be redistributed and we compost the spoiled food items.

In the end, only about 8 to 10 percent of everything collected is really non edible and is composted.

We adopt a zero waste approach through every stage of our operations, a living proof of our commitment towards social and ecological responsibility.

Redistribution

On Sunday afternoon, we reload the truck and we bring the items we don’t keep to the food bank we are associated with. By quickly redistributing the food items, we ensure that they are as fresh as possible so that the people who receive them have quality products to cook with.

It is more than 70% of the collected food that is being redistributed to our partners to help them in their work.

Organizations we distribute to

Important pillars of the community, the neighbourhood community organizations devote themselves to improving the daily lives of citizens in need; their goal is to eliminate inequalities. We are proud to collaborate with these local actors and to help build a more equitable and cooperative society that makes human beings its main priority.

Transformation

In the kitchen, we transform good quality unsold fruits into great quality fruit spreads. Canning is the best way to harness the great potential of these perfectly ripe fruits.

Responsible Waste Management

Apart during the freezing season, the vast majority of our food waste is put in the composting bin available on premises at La Maisonnette des parents. The rest of the time, food waste is put in compost bins managed by the City of Montreal.

We carefully sort out all food packaging in order to properly recycle them.