A new facility at Gardengate opens doors for Kamloops food businesses

“The large space here is right around 1,400 square feet, half of which is a commercial kitchen,” Gardengate Program Manager Robert Wright explains.

It’s a brand-new facility, finished in the spring of 2021. For Robert Wright and the folks in the Gardengate program, the new digs have kept the program rolling right through the pandemic.

“Being a mental health program and being able to contribute to people’s wellness, this space was really timely,” Wright says. “We really would have been in a position where some people may not have been able to come, some people would not have been comfortable coming.”

According to Wright, the new training facility has really increased the capacity of the program. It gives participants plenty of space to put all that fresh produce to good use.

“We’re back to producing two meals a week for everyone that works here,” Wright says. “And we’ve been back to doing all of our canning and preserving, as well.”

The kitchen is commercial grade, which means local food businesses can use the space to make their products as well. Gardengate has partnered with the Kamloops Food Policy Council to rent out the kitchen to Kamloops Food Policy Council Food Hub members. Kent Fawcett is the guy who coordinates that side of the facility.

“They could provide a kitchen space that we could rent to our members without having our own space,” Fawcett says. “When [Gardengate] built the new space this year, they were willing to enter a partnership arrangement with us.”

The commercial kitchen is available to Food Hub Members who want to take their food business up a notch or two.

“Say you’re at the Farmers Market and you want to make tomato sauce or salsa. That’s considered a high-risk food, in which case you’d need a commercial kitchen, you can’t make it at your home,” Fawcett explains. “So it’s when people want to level-up [their business] to the next level, to be able to have wider distribution or make a product they can’t make at home, they can rent [the kitchen] here for their business.”

Revenue from the commercial kitchen rental is split between the Food Policy Council and the Gardengate program. The facility is also going to give Gardengate the ability to operate comfortably year-round.

“It’s providing that opportunity for people,” Wright says. “We’re getting back into winter. That space is there, we’re going to be able to use it, and people are going to be able to come and work safely.”

If you’re interested in renting the commercial kitchen space at Gardengate, you can contact Kent Fawcett online.

by Adam Donnelly

A new facility at Gardengate opens doors for Kamloops food businesses

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