Transforming Food, Families and Communities
Harvest Manitoba exists to ensure no one goes hungry. But the truth is, too many people still do.
“As a single mom raising two teens, you’re constantly working just to make ends meet. All your energy goes into surviving.” – Harvest Manitoba Client
Each month, more than 108,000 Manitobans across 51 communities rely on Harvest and our food network, double the number from just five years ago. We’re already operating beyond capacity and will not be able to meet demand from our current facility by 2028.
Meanwhile, 1.2 million tonnes of edible food are wasted in Manitoba each year, nearly as much as we consume. This isn’t garbage, it’s good food without the infrastructure to store, process, or distribute before it spoils.
To ensure everyone who needs food gets it, we must do things differently. Now there is an opportunity.
The Solution
The $30-million, 100,000 sq. ft. Manitoba Food Transformation Centre will recover, process, and distribute food that would otherwise go to waste. It will more than double our capacity to 28 million pounds annually and help 20,000+ more families.
The Centre will include:
- Flash-freezing technology to preserve fresh produce
- A commercial kitchen producing 520,000 meals annually
- Bagging and sorting stations for potatoes, eggs, and bulk products
- Expanded cold storage
- Improved shipping, receiving and warehousing across the province
What This Means for Manitoba
- 20,000+ more families will have a regular, nutritious, locally produced food supply
- 520,000 meals will be ready to distribute to communities and for emergency needs
- School nutrition programs will expand
- Local producers will have an outlet for surplus, nutrient-dense food
- Hundreds more people will be trained on the latest technology onsite and go on to permanent employment every year
This is the most significant advancement in food security in Manitoba in over 40 years. The $30-million Manitoba Food Transformation Centre will be funded through a public-private partnership, with equal investments sought from the Government of Canada, the Province of Manitoba, and the community.
Will You Help Build It?
With your support, the Manitoba Food Transformation Centre will be up and running in 2028, and tonnes more healthy food from local producers will do what they were intended to do – feed people.
“If it were not for the food bank, I know we would go hungry much more often.” – Harvest Manitoba Client
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Vince Barletta, President & CEO
204-982-3669
ceo@harvestmanitoba.ca
Registered Charitable Number: 131792616 RR0001
Sign up for Updates on the Manitoba Food Transformation Centre
The Manitoba Food Transformation Centre will change how food reaches people across our province by recovering surplus food, expanding access, and helping tens of thousands more Manitobans. If you’re interested in following this project and being part of what comes next, sign up to receive updates directly from our CEO, Vince Barletta. You’ll get progress updates, key milestones, and opportunities to support and help bring the Centre to life. This is a chance to be part of a major shift in how we fight food insecurity in Manitoba.