Kingsway Mall has expanded its rooftop garden with the goal of providing more fresh produce to Edmonton’s Food Bank.
Growing off its success last year, Kingsway Mall’s rooftop garden now features 54 planters, which is nearly double the number the garden had last summer.
This year, the mall hopes to produce 300 pounds of fruits, vegetables and herbs to donate to the food bank. Last year, the mall was able to harvest 100 pounds of produce for the food bank.
“We learned a lot from last year, and very excited to apply those learnings, add a lot more pots, and add our first ever beehive,” said Bo Tarasenko, marketing manager at Kingsway Mall.
“Our goal is to have a successful garden and work with our gardeners at MicroHabitat as well as our retail gardeners here at Glass Earth Inc., to do that, but also to just raise awareness and inspire people to try urban gardening and beekeeping. And, most of all, to raise awareness for the food bank and encourage people to volunteer and donate to support.”
Each month, Edmonton’s Food Bank supports more than 34,000 people. Nearly six million kilograms of food is distributed through the agency every year. Demand at the food bank has increased by 44 per cent in the past four years.
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“Fresh produce is always needed for our food programs which is why we appreciate initiatives like Kingsway Mall’s rooftop garden with MicroHabitat,” said Tamisan Bencz-Knight, manager of strategic relationships and partnerships with Edmonton’s Food Bank.
“Let’s make giving a habit and put food on the table for those in need while getting your hands a little dirty.”
The garden is a partnership between the mall and MicroHabitat, a sustainability and urban farming organization.
Robert Reuther, an urban farm coordinator with MicroHabitat, said they have everything from tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplants and zucchini to rosemary, chive, parsley and chard.
“It’s an advantage that I think a lot of people take for granted,” Reuther said. “Having our own fresh produce is really important.”
The food bank hopes this initiative will also highlight the fact that the agency accepts donations of homegrown produce.
“We encourage the community to grow an extra row of vegetables for donation through our ‘Plant, Grow, Share a Row’ program,” said Bencz-Knight.
The food bank’s media and communications coordinator said the fresh produce is really well received by those who rely on the hamper program.
“At the end of the season when the produce starts to roll in and we can start to add this fresh produce to the hampers, people love it,” Doug Thomson said. “It’s just so much fresher and it just tastes better when it comes from the garden.
“Edmonton is an incredible community when it comes to giving and helping,” he said. “The rooftop garden here is just another way this community helps. And we need the help. We’re seeing numbers that continue to climb.”
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