Phone number: 250-508-4190
Location: Victoria, BC
Company or affiliation: Â I own and operate Real Food Made Easy, but the food equipment lending library would be operated in partnership with a community organization, and on a not-for-profit basis. Â My expertise would be used to canvas the community to develop the equipment list, and source equipment via the most economic means possible.
My awesome idea:
I am proposing the creation of a Kitchen Equipment lending library in Greater Victoria. Â This library would house kitchen equipment that is typically used occasionally for tasks such as canning, dehydrating, or making various foods from scratch. Â Individuals would be able, for a nominal fee, borrow kitchen equipment for up to 1 week at a time.
More and more families are recognizing the importance of knowing where their food comes from, and are interested in making food that is free of additives and preservatives. Â Foods such as fresh-made pasta, can be made without specialized equipment, but can be made much more easily (and in larger batches that can be shared and/or frozen!) with a pasta maker. Â Furthermore, there are more families with one or members who have dietary restrictions (e.g. dairy-free), which require them to make food from scratch. Families such as this will have greater access to equipment that will help them make their own specialized foods.
A community-based Food Equipment lending library would make it easier for families to consider making a wider ranges of foods, knowing the equipment was available, and within their means. All of this will help promote more adventurous eating by Victoria families, and help promote healthy eating habits.
Anything else?
If connected to a community centre with cooking facilities, the Food Equipment lending library could also provide a secondary means of connecting people, by coordinating with specialized food preparation training (e.g. how to pressure-can, or how to make pasta).
This also provides an opportunity for local restaurants with surplus equipment to donate to community-based food production efforts. Â Local retail establishments who sell kitchen wares are also a potential source of sponsorship.