A program that began as a way to stop food ending up in the landfill in the early days of the pandemic when restaurants closed is now regularly providing frozen meals for those in need — up to 1,000 a week.
Red Cedar Café started in April 2020 as the first COVID-19 lockdowns came into affect. Restaurants and commercial kitchens had suddenly closed, putting servers, chefs, dishwashers, organizers and other in the hospitality industry out of a job.
Suppliers found themselves stuck with produce that would have normally have been sold to local restaurants.
In response, a group of hospitality workers came up with the frozen-meal program, turning food that would otherwise have been wasted into healthy meals for unhoused people and those in self-isolation.
Since then, the program has evolved into both a food-waste recovery and meal program for those in need, with meals prepared in-house by volunteers and culinary staff.
The produce is donated primarily by grocery stores and local farms, in season.
“We make the most of what we have,” said Rusty Russell, head chef. “We have a massive, 3,000-square-foot commercial kitchen where we make up to 1,000 meals every week — with no waste.”
She said that, with all the ingredients donated, they can supply a meal for less than $5.
The organization’s industrial kitchen is in the former Paul’s Motor Inn at 1900 Douglas St. The property is owned by B.C. Housing, which acquired it in 2020 to turn its 75 hotel rooms into temporary supportive housing.
The individual meals are prepared by a team of up to 50 volunteers at multiple workstations. The menu changes every week, based on what food was donated the week before. They provide vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options whenever possible.
Those in need can order up to seven items per week, plus bread, prepared salad, coffee, granola and a fruit smoothie. People have the option of paying what they can, but all items are available at no charge.
People order their meals online every Thursday at 5 p.m., and they’re typically all spoken for within half an hour. They can be delivered or picked up. The limit is eight items per person per week.
Volunteers deliver the frozen meals to people from the West Shore to Sidney on Sundays from 5 to 7:30 p.m.
Russell, 43, who has been cooking since high school, said the service attracts a “cross-section of people,” from students to seniors.
The registered charity also operates a Free Store program offering produce, baked goods and other groceries not used by the kitchen at no charge. It only opens at 10 a.m. on Monday and Friday, serving upwards of 100 clients each week.
The organization only has three paid positions, with no administrative staff. The team operates Friday to Monday.
“I love the bustle of a restaurant and I love making food,” said Russell, who has worked at a number of local restaurants for 15 years. “But I also don’t enjoy the rush and how some employers squeeze the most out of people. It’s nice to work in an environment where it’s not about the profit.”
She said the only limit on the potential to cook more meals is resources. A community grant by the Victoria Foundation in 2023 went toward offsetting operational costs.
“We can feed more people if we had more money and more volunteers, especially during the summer,” she said.
For more, go to redcedarcafe.ca.
