The Moose Jaw Co-op is teaming up with the Moose Jaw & District Foodbank to address food insecurity in the city.
The new client-choice shopping model, called ‘The Harvest Pantry,’ is set to launch with the reopening of the food bank on Oct. 29. It will see people picking their own groceries from food bank shelves, rather than getting a pre-made hamper.
Jason Moore, executive director of the Moose Jaw & District Food Bank, spoke about the reason for the change. “The hamper model is not as efficient, and less personal, and we took a look at what other food banks were doing across the country.”
Moore said they visited a food bank that had a client-choice shopping model in place and decided to use it for Moose Jaw, approaching community members for help. He said Geoff Anderson, CEO of the Moose Jaw Co-op, came on board right away.
“Through dignified choices, bringing dignity to people that are dealing with food insecurity, [it] will only help them to make more dignified steps to become self-sufficient,” Anderson said regarding the Moose Jaw Co-op's involvement.
The Moose Jaw Co-op will be providing $30,000 for three years towards the model, for a grand total of $90,000.
Anderson spoke about the decision behind ‘The Harvest Pantry’ name. “It talks about the newness to life, that we’re harvesting better choices for our food insecure in the community.”
Clients can phone to book appointments for the food bank’s new shopping model starting on Friday, Oct. 25, ahead of Tuesday’s re-opening. There will be a soft launch of the new model on Monday, Oct. 28.
Moore said with the change to the model and extending hours of operation, they are in need of volunteers to join their team. Find more information on their website here.
To hear the full conversation with Jason Moore and Geoff Anderson when they stopped by 800CHAB to speak with Rob Carnie, click here.