As the Food Scraps Drop Spot pilot project comes to an end, the Vancouver Farmers Market and Recycling Alternative is extending the service into the winter. This pilot project has been a real success story. Over 11 weeks, apartment and condo dwellers from downtown communities have made close to 2,000 drops and brought in almost 10,000 pounds of food scraps for composting.
“We are constantly amazed by the droppers’ participation and enthusiasm for this project,” says Louise Schwarz, the co-owner of Recycling Alternative. “We have already extended the pilot project by one week and we know that the only option for us is to carry this service beyond the pilot project.”
Beginning on November 5th, the Winter Food Scraps Drop Spot will take place every Saturday in 2 new locations. Droppers can take their food scraps to the Winter Farmers Market in front of the Nat Bailey Stadium from 10am to 2pm or the Drop Spot in front of the Gordon Neighbourhood House on Broughton St and Nelson St from 10am to 1pm.
The funding structure for the drop spot is also shifting with the transition into the winter.
“City of Vancouver’s Greenest City Neighbourhood Grant has allowed us to get this project off the ground and bring awareness of the issue to the community. As we extend this service long term, we are considering other ways to make this service self-sustainable,” explains Tara McDonald, the Executive Director of Vancouver Farmers Market. “We are still hoping to have funding support from the City of Vancouver as we move forward. But we are also going to ask the users for a small donation to support the Drop Spot operation.”
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The Food Scraps Drop Spot project began as a joint initiative between the Vancouver Farmers Markets and Recycling Alternative, with partial funding provided by a City of Vancouver Greenest City Neighbourhood Grant. It is designed specifically to service high density urban areas of apartments and condos, which are not included in the city’s current food scraps collection for single homes. The model implemented in this pilot is demonstrating a flexible and efficient alternative for multi-unit residences.