Montreal, Quebec, December 13, 2023 - The Récolte-Don program, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, was born of an alliance between 3 organizations to help Quebecers in vulnerable situations. Thanks to the 2023 campaign, over 1.5 M servings of vegetables will be donated to the 19 Moissons régionales members and then redistributed to nearly 1,300 organizations across Quebec.
These donations help more than 870,000 people every month. The program has been running for 10 years now, thanks to the collaboration between Producteurs de légumes de transformation du Québec (PLTQ), Nortera and the Banques alimentaires du Québec (BAQ) network.
How the program works
Since 2014, PLTQ has been on a mission to encourage its pea, bean and sweet corn growers to voluntarily and generously donate part of their harvest. Despite an exceptionally difficult season for growers due to an unusually high amount of rainfall, they maintained their usual generosity by offering a large quantity of quality vegetables.
"We're proud to help these people through a profession we're passionate about, growing nutritious vegetables." Since 2014, the generosity of producers has made it possible to donate more than 6,000,000 servings of vegetables," says Pascal Forest, president of Producteurs de légumes de transformation du Québec.
The vegetables are then processed by Nortera in its Quebec plants. As North America's leading processor of frozen and canned vegetables, Nortera has been committed to doubling all donations from producers since 2022.
"Nortera is particularly proud to celebrate this tenth year of partnership and to be able to double the amount of nutritious vegetables donated to support Quebec communities. Without the collaboration of the Producteurs de légumes de transformation du Québec and the Banques alimentaires du Québec, this program could not exist," adds Jean-Pierre Haché, Nortera's Vice-President of Quality Assurance.
The vegetables are then distributed to Quebec's food banks, ensuring that the food is shared equitably between Moisson's 19 members throughout the year and across Quebec.
"We recognize the spirit of solidarity shown by Quebec farmers, and it's something that goes straight to our hearts. Thanks to the support of Producteurs de légumes de transformation du Québec and Nortera, more than 870,000 people in need every month will be able to add healthy, quality food to their plates. This program is essential and has a positive impact on the lives of so many Quebecers," adds Martin Munger, General Manager of Banques alimentaires du Québec.