Food bank surging with vegetables thanks to Power Growers

By Sean Feagan, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Albertans in need will receive thousands of pounds of fresh vegetables thanks to a season’s worth of work by a group of volunteers and a local business that gave them room to grow.

Since 1999, a group of TransAlta retirees have been growing vegetables and donating them to the Calgary Food Bank through an initiative called Projects Organized with Energetic Retirees, or “Power” for short.

Throughout this time, the Power Growers have operated a garden on an AltaLink property housing its Janet substation, located just southwest of Chestermere. But when Altalink needed to construct a maintenance complex, the garden had to be relocated.

To help with the relocation, the group approached Eagle Lake Professional Supply for compost, of which the company donated a few truckloads to the cause. But after seeing the group in action, Eric Heuver, the company’s president, offered the group land to establish a new garden.

Taking up this offer, the Power Growers expanded their operations this year to include another garden plot, coined the Get Growing Garden, located on an acre previously used to grow sod on the company’s property east of Strathmore.

“In a season that started out with so much uncertainty back in the spring, the Get Growing Garden has been a real joy for our organization and one we’re proud to be involved with,” said Brian Bolger of Eagle Lake Professional Supply, in an email.

“They’ve been a phenomenal support for us by offering that land and their irrigation system,” said Fred Ritter, Power chair. “It’s been tremendous.”

After a season planting, weeding and maintaining the garden, the Power Growers harvested on Sept. 22. The 35 volunteers collected 23,362 pounds of produce, mainly root vegetables, including onions, carrots, beets and potatoes, as well as zucchini and spaghetti squash.

Zucchinis, harvested since early August, have been particularly prolific, with 116 plants yielding over 4,000 pounds of fresh produce for donation. “It’s been a great producer,” said Ritter.

The Power Grower’s other garden, at Janet, was harvested by 45 volunteers on Sept. 29, yielding 15,869 pounds of fresh produce, he said.

“Close to 40,000 pounds of produce has gone to the food bank this year,” said Ritter. “It’s for a good cause, especially with the need in the communities; the food bank is such an important provider to folks in need out there.”

Once received by the Calgary Food Bank, the produce is sorted then enters the organization’s emergency food hampers or is shipped to other food banks across the province, including in Edmonton and Medicine Hat, explained Lynn Tipper, community engagement coordinator. “We want to provide the most nutritious hamper we can for our clients and having the fresh produce in there is invaluable.”