Greening Kitchens in the Downtown Eastside

Article by: Colleen Kimmett, Open File

It’s mid-morning at First United Church and relatively quiet in this vital service hub in the Downtown Eastside community. About a dozen people linger outside, and a few sit in the large gymnasium that serves as a dining hall.

During mealtimes, between 800 and 1,000 people file through here every day. This is just a fraction of the millions of free or low-cost meals that are served each year at kitchens in the Downtown Eastside.

Recently, 11 of these kitchens — which estimate they serve a total of 1.5 million meals a year — came together to see how they could reduce waste, save energy and lower costs as they try to provide the most basic needs to area residents.

The impetus for the meeting was Amy Robinson, executive director of an organization called LoCoBC, which received $25,000 from the city to look at how to improve sustainability in the Downtown Eastside. The goal, says Robinson, was to identify key business issues for these kitchens and help them work together on solutions.

April Pringle, food services manager for First United, says the first meeting, held in February, was “so beneficial.” She was able to share her organizations’ experience composting kitchen waste, and address concerns that composting might take up too much space (it doesn’t) or smell bad (it’s barely noticeable). Before First United started in the summer, “we had two garbage bins picked up every day,” says Pringle. “Now, we have two garbage bins picked up three times a week.”

The meeting allowed Pringle to connect with two other kitchens in the neighbourhood that were interested in composting but didn’t have enough volume to pay for pick-up service. Now, First United has agreed to accept food waste from Mission Possible and the Lookout Society’s Livingroom drop-in centre.

Robinson says they are looking at other ways to reduce costs of going green by working together — purchasing large volumes of biodegradable containers instead of Styrofoam, for example, or ordering more local produce in bulk.

“1.5 million meals is a lot of food,” says Robinson. “That’s why we think there is power in this group procurement.”

William Oksanen is the manager of the Living Room. He says simply having the opportunity to sit down and share information about what works and what doesn’t has been helpful. “As well as the personal aspect of getting to know the people in your community,” he says. “It’s actually quite fun.”

“It’s about not having to reinvent the wheel,” agrees Pringle. “I find we do not work closely enough down here. We’re all trying to have less of an impact on the environment, and we’re trying to bring more healthy food down here.”