Cape Breton community garden seeks to provide healthy choices to people in need

Community garden feeds the need The community garden at North Sydney’s food bank welcomes everyone to dig-in.

A new community garden in Cape Breton, N.S., aims to provide healthy food choices to people in need across the community.

Stacy Ellis with the North Sydney Food Bank said they launched the garden due to a need for fresh vegetables.

“We thought we’d maybe use the space and boxes we had for a community garden that we could let all the community come and plant what they’d like to grow,” Ellis said. “We think by planting this garden we can help our clients have better healthy choices.

“With the price of groceries right now, it’s really hard for everyone so we think this garden will help us to be better able to give better choices.”

The garden attracted the attention of Cherie Swift, owner of GRÁ, a sustainable and locally-sourced restaurant on Kempt Head Road in Cape Breton.

“We’ve been looking for a group to focus on that we could help out and this is a good fit for us because I’ve grown things my whole life,” Swift said. “Every year we’ll continue to help them in the spring and grow things for the community.”

Brandon Kroestsch is also helping with the garden, using his landscape experience to get the soil in good shape.

“I’ve received help from the food bank in the past and I’m very grateful for that,” he said. “I wanted to find a way to give back.”

Ellis said anyone who wants to volunteer at the garden is quite welcome to do so.

“We’d be more than happy to have your help,” she said.

For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.