A vegetable garden for the neighbourhood

Kitchen gardening in our neighbourhood

The SAQ Campus is located in an urban food desert with limited access to fresh fruit and vegetables. Because food assistance is our corporate cause, we wondered how we could contribute more to food security in our area, in our neighbourhood.
That’s why, ten years ago, we launched an urban agriculture project on campus land and in association with a local organization.

Watch these videos to learn more

French only

What’s up in the garden?

Assisted by the Cuisine collective Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (CCHM), we took things a step further by carrying out an expansion project aimed at increasing  our local contribution and make even more of a difference.

On campus land, our partner, the CCHM, has developped a kitchen garden dedicated entirely to feeding area residents.

Here are some of the features of this collaborative project:

Here are the main achievements of our first year of collaboration:

•    A total of 4.3 metric tons of fruits and vegetables grown in a 530 m² greenhouse in operation 10 months a year and in a 2,230 m² outdoor kitchen garden
•    110 different types of fruits and vegetables grown
•    360 kilograms of honey produced
•    37 fruit trees and 250 berry bushes planted to feed people in the neighbourhood. This year we picked apples and pears.
•    An opportunity to volunteer for SAQ employees and local businesses and organizations. around ten companies have come to lend a hand to the vegetable garden;

•    5,000 hours of social reintegration training were offered;
•    our vegetables are sold to 6 restaurants and 6 solidarity markets.

TO DISCOVER:
the Cuisine collective Hochelaga-Maisonneuve (CCHM) urban farm

The CCHM is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote healthy eating, encourage autonomy and, by refocusing the economy to serve social needs, develop people’s ability to take action.

Food assistance,
our corporate cause

Why do we care about food assistance? Because we believe that before enjoying wine and spirits, it’s important to have enough to eat. Over the years, we have developed solid ties with Food Banks of Quebec, its Moisson organizations and La Tablée des chefs to support their mission of providing sustenance to Quebecers in need.

We are proud to have supported their efforts for 14 years and counting and to have provided more than $16 million in food assistance.

To learn more about our food assistance initiatives.

Montréal, a world capital in urban agriculture

Well rooted in the local reality since the 1970s, Montréal has become a global leader in urban agriculture. Urban agriculture encourages, among other things, the growing of healthy, local fruit and vegetables by collective, inclusive and innovative enterprises.