Become a Quest Food Donor
We are looking to build partnerships in our communities and hope you will consider donating:
- Short dated, pushed back or overstocked products such as, but not limited to: dry goods, frozen foods, dairy items, meat and fish products, produce, cooking oil, rice, grains, baby food, formulas, and canned goods.
- Through our repack department, with help from our gracious volunteers, we can take large food product packages and rework them into smaller retail packs that are affordable for our clients.
Almost all of Quest’s food is donated by local food partners from across British Columbia and delivered across our five Lower Mainland markets at reduced cost to our client communities. Donations are shipped to our Markets and onto our clients’ tables within two days of receiving them at our Distribution Centre.
To learn more and donate food please email: Janice Martin, Director of Food Logistics for information and partnership opportunities.
Quest Food Standards
Despite our model and others like it operating across British Columbia, thousands of pounds of good, nutritional food still goes to waste simply because it is part of a surplus that cannot be sold or because it is oddly sized, blemished, or nearing its best-before-date. The Best-Before-Date is when the quality of the food is no longer optimum but is still safe to eat and enjoy. Often it means the food might not be as fresh , taste or smell the same, or contain as many nutrients as the day it was first packaged.
Quest follows the “Durable Life Information on Food Products” fact sheet and the “Acts and Regulations” administered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) for all food that is handled through Quest Outreach Society. We also reference Food Safe Guidelines from resources such as “The Health Canada model for Food Safety in Food Banks”.
Household & Garden Donation Policy
Thank you for your interest in making a food donation to Quest! Quest’s food policy is restricted to food recovery from industry food suppliers and excludes acceptance of food donations from individual households and local gardeners. Quest is accountable to Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) rules. We must be able to trace where our food comes from and produce documentation regarding what herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers were used to grow it.
If you are an individual or a group of compassionate gardeners wishing to support Quest and impact communities who identify as food insecure, please consider making a financial donation today.
