Second Harvest Opens New Food Processing Facility Combining Food Rescue and Social Enterprise

As students head back to school, Second Harvest is launching an innovative new Food Processing Facility that brings together food rescue, Canadian agriculture and school food programs under one roof. Built on a social enterprise business model, the facility will create affordable, nutritious food for schools while generating revenue that is reinvested into the organization's charitable mission. At the same time, it will expand Second Harvest's ability to transform rescued surplus food into products for distribution to communities, helping support families facing affordability pressures at school and at home.

The new facility, located at the organization's warehouse in Etobicoke, will transform suitable rescued food that cannot easily be redistributed in its original form into usable food products. It will operate as a social enterprise, purchasing produce from farmers and producers to manufacture nutritious products for school food programs, with revenue reinvested into Second Harvest's charitable mission.

Starting this fall, Second Harvest will be securing produce through local farms and providing 28,000 students with healthy prepared fruits and vegetables through the Toronto Foundation for Student Success.

The launch of this facility comes at an important moment for Canada's food system. The federal government's newly announced National Food Security Strategy identifies increased domestic food processing capacity, innovation and stronger food-system resilience as priorities for building a more self-sufficient Canadian food system. At the same time, Canada's National School Food Program is expanding access to nutritious food for children across the country.

"At a time when many families are struggling with rising food costs, a stronger school food system offers a meaningful source of stability and support for children. When kids have reliable access to nutritious meals at school, they're better positioned to learn, grow and thrive," said Lori Nikkel, CEO of Second Harvest. "This facility allows us to do more with the food we already have so we can reach more students and communities throughout the year."