Cowichan Green Community is receiving nearly $500,000 to complete the construction of the Cowichan Farm and Food Hub Kitchen (The Food Hub).
“We have been working on this project since 2019 and have faced numerous delays, including supply-chain issues, COVID, permits, and increased expenses,” said Cowichan Green Community Society executive director Judy Stafford. “We are thrilled to receive this funding that gets us successfully to the finish line, and I would like to thank all our community partners.”
READ MORE: Cowichan Green Community to move forward with new food-processing hub
The funding is from the B.C. government’s Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program. Communities throughout the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities will be receiving up to nearly $13 million in funding for 41 approved projects from the program to help strengthen local economies. The program will see as much as $99 million invested in more than 300 projects throughout rural B.C. in the first two years.
The Food Hub will include a hazard analysis critical control points-certified commercial kitchen, warehouse space, teaching facility, storage, offices, and food aggregation and distribution centre. The Food Hub will also provide shared access for production and training in food processing, culinary arts, new product development and Indigenous and culturally diverse food preservation techniques.
“People in rural areas know their communities better than anyone else, and that’s why it’s so exciting to see these projects that they have envisioned going forward,” said minister of jobs, economic development and innovation, Brenda Bailey. “We’re working with community leaders in every corner of our province to build thriving, sustainable economies for generations to come.”
“I am so happy to see our community benefiting from this program and the investments announced today will help support our local food industry, expand options for skills training, and create more opportunities for local businesses,” said Doug Routley, MLA for Nanaimo-North Cowichan.
Applications for the third intake of the program are expected to open in July and will remain open until the end of October 2024. To learn about the Rural Economic Diversification and Infrastructure Program visit https://gov.bc.ca/redip.