As fruit begins to hang heavy on trees and bushes around Greater Victoria, the team at LifeCycles is ready to lighten their load.
The non-profit hosts a Fruit Tree Project, where more than 100 volunteers harvest and redistribute backyard fruit in a bid to change the way people think about local food and urban living.
The project supports homeowners or renters with fruit trees but not the know-how or capability to harvest. Over the past decade, 1,200 tree stewards have registered 1,505 trees.
Additionally, the Project supports homeowners or renters, referred to as Tree Stewards by the Project, who have fruit trees but don’t have the know-how or time to harvest them.
“We focus on only sharing food with our community partners that we would want to bite into ourselves," executive director Alex McArdle said in a news release. “Don’t worry though, the rest certainly does not go to waste. We transform fruit that is overripe, pest damaged, or otherwise in need of processing into social enterprise products, like fresh apple cider as well as a Backyard Blend Cider in partnership with Spinnakers.”
All the proceeds made through value-added products are used to fund the project – much needed as the LifeCycles Project Society faced financial challenges last year.
“The board of directors and staff spent significant time over the past year creating a focus for the organization that prioritizes the Fruit Tree Program and the Welland Legacy Park and Community Orchard. With clear need in the region and renewed energy in the organization, we are excited for the fruit tree season ahead,” said board chair Jess Gunnarson.
The fruit tree project saw more than 100 active volunteers harvest 30,703 pounds of fruit from 306 backyards and six farms last season. A total 21, 447 pounds of produce was distributed to the community.
Visit lifecyclesproject.ca to register a tree or volunteer.
