“No one wanted to shut the markets down,” said CHEP Good Food’s director. “But … we have to decide what our capacity is.”
But this week — and in the weeks ahead — the market shelves are bare.
CHEP Good Food, the organization in charge of the community markets, has put the program on pause in the midst of a ‘perfect storm’ of food supply problems, unexpected staffing shortages and rising food insecurity.
“Some things are uncertain, but this is definitely not a program closure,” said Gord Androsoff, CHEP Good Food’s executive director. “We’re just doing what we need to do under these circumstances, and we hope that (the markets) will return before September. That’s our plan.”
“We couldn’t get food from them for about four weeks,” he said.
While there are some backup options, Androsoff said those are “more expensive, and they don’t have the same selection, and they’re not really equipped to fill our orders” of thousands of dollars worth of produce and pantry staples every week.
On top of that problem, CHEP’s community market coordinator was recently injured and is not able to work at her full capacity; there was no one around to replace her in this role for the near term.
“No one wanted to shut the markets down,” Androsoff said. “But as a small organization, we have to decide what our capacity is. And right now, we’re thin-staffed — when something like this happens, we just don’t have the extra people to bring it together.”
In April, May and June, the markets ran three days a week at Station 20 West, and one day a week at Nutana Collegiate, Saskatoon Trades and Skills Centre, and Christ Church Anglican.
Over those three months, community members purchased more than $13,000 worth of food at the markets. CHEP buys it in bulk and sells it at low prices in neighbourhoods where fresh, healthy groceries are often inaccessible or come at a premium.
In that same period of time, customers also redeemed nearly $20,000 worth of coupons at the markets. The coupons are distributed by agencies and programs throughout the city, like the Saskatchewan Health Authority’s ‘Healthy Mother, Healthy Baby’ and ‘Our Neighbourhood Health Centre’ initiatives. The coupons can be redeemed for specific groceries like eggs, or for pre-set dollar amounts.
In the weeks ahead, Androsoff said he is concerned about the people who were relying on the markets to redeem their vouchers or get affordable, healthy food in their neighbourhoods. Right now in Saskatoon, there is “not really” a replacement program to meet these needs, he said.
It could have been much worse if it had happened during the school year, he added.
“That would have been a lot more difficult for us, because bulk-buying for schools is a big chunk of our purchases.”
Meanwhile, in the absence of the community markets, Androsoff implores Saskatonians to do what they can to support food security agencies in the city and help their neighbours if they can.
“People in the community are struggling to find food,” he said. “The demand keeps getting higher, and the funding opportunities seem to keep shrinking. It’s not a good alignment.”
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