The local Canterbury Community Garden Association has partnered with Te Pae Christchurch Convention Centre to act on its sustainability commitment.
The centre will supply the “soil food” generated by its food dehydrator to the organisation with weekly pick ups of soil food underway to 52 community gardens in the region.
Te Pae Christchurch General Manager Ross Steele said: “Sustainability is a key tenet of operations across the Centre, and something we committed to very early on in our journey. With operations now well underway, it’s exciting to be able to recognise an initiative that we have been working towards since pre-opening. The partnership also aligns well with our parent company ASM Global’s corporate social responsibility program ASM Global Acts, particularly the key program areas of protecting the environment and strengthening our communities.”
The “soil food” dehydrator used at Te Pae Christchurch is provided by Sustainably. It has the capacity to process 200 kilograms of food waste a day and works by heating the Centre’s excess food (food that is unsuitable to be donated to Foodbank Canterbury) to a set temperature over nine hours, reducing the food to a soil-like consistency which is rich in nutrients.