Organic Waste Referral to Metro Vancouver
Motion 12 · Standing Committee of Council on City Finance and Services, February 4, 2026
Summary
- Motion directed staff to report on feasible options for reducing organic waste from large commercial businesses (grocery stores, wholesalers) currently going to landfill, in line with the Climate Emergency Action Plan.
- Proponents cited methane emissions from landfill organics as a high-impact near-term climate lever, and noted existing work by the Vancouver Economic Commission and SFU Food Systems Lab means staff would not be starting from scratch.
- Public speakers included food recovery organizations (FoodMesh, Downtown Eastside Emergency Hub) and climate advocates, all strongly in support.
- Councillor Kirby-Yung moved a referral amendment, noting much of the jurisdiction and enforcement authority lies with Metro Vancouver, which is currently updating its regional solid waste management plan with approximately 20 food waste actions; referred to Metro Vancouver with direction for city staff to engage on regional collaboration.
Vote
Public comments
Read all 12 statements
Transcript
40 segments
Thank you, Chair.
Yeah, this motion addresses the ongoing issue of organic waste from large commercial businesses such as grocery stores and wholesalers continuing to be sent to landfill despite existing diversion requirements. When organic material breaks down in landfills... It produces methane, a highly potent greenhouse gas, making organic waste reduction one of the most immediate ways to cut near-term emissions. Importantly, this motion builds on work already completed through initiatives led by the Vancouver Economic Commission and research from Simon Fraser's Food Systems Lab. Rather than asking staff to start from scratch, it directs staff to summarize feasible options and clarify the city's role within existing capacity and jurisdiction. The focus is on upstream waste prevention, accountability, and emissions reductions. Overall, the motion aligns with existing work with Vancouver's climate emergency action plan targets in a practical and achievable way.
Thank you. Yeah, it was co-submitted with Councillor Fry, so Councillor Fry is seconding the motion. We will now hear from the ready speaker for this motion. Public speakers should stay whether they are in support or in opposition of the recommendations and may only speak once. I will also ask speakers if they are residents of Vancouver if it is not noted on the speakers list. Public speakers speaking in person can use the new podium on the left side of the gallery. Please adjust the podium to a comfortable height for speaking into the microphone by using the controls on the bottom right-hand corner. Our first resident speaker is Adam Hawk.
Adam.
Good afternoon, Mayor and Council. My name is Adam Hawk. I am a 20-year resident of the City of Vancouver. I'm speaking in strong support of the motion to reduce business-generated organic waste as part of Vancouver's Climate Emergency Action Plan. I spent the last 25 years in the organics and specialty grocery distribution business, and I've seen firsthand how much perfectly good food is wasted. Not because it lacks value, but because our systems make disposal easier than prevention or recovery. In the 90s, when best before dates were popularized, something striking happened. Sales of many shelf-stable and perishable items nearly doubled. Not because people were eating more, but because suddenly the garbage can became the best customer. Product that was safe, edible, and nutrition was now treated as waste. The mindset still shapes how food moves through the commercial system. This motion matters because organic waste is a climate issue, not just a waste issue. Methane from landfill organics is one of the fastest ways to worsen near-term climate change, and one of the fastest ways to reduce if we act now. Large commercial generators play an outside role, and improving prevention and diversion here is amongst the most cost-effective climate solutions available to the city this decade. Importantly, Vancouver is not starting from scratch. Organizations like Food Mesh, Too Good to Go, Food Runners, and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank already diverting enormous amounts of edible food from landfill they reduce emissions strain the circular economy and keep keep value in the system as well as being part of the food security solution while this motion wisely does ask staff to build on existing work or Nate with regional partners and focus on prevention accountability and emissions reduction it's not new bureaucracy it's a pragmatic It's aligned with the Climate Emergency Action Plan and Zero Waste 2040 and grounded in real-world operations. Reducing commercial food waste is responsible climate policy, smart economics, and a long overdue improvement in waste management. I urge Council to support this motion. Thank you.
Okay, speaker number two is Matthew Yudin. No. Okay, speaker number three is Chloe Leslie.
No. Speaker number four is Jill Ratcliffe. Jill?
No. Speaker number five is Alicia Squamish.
No. Speaker number six is Samar Daviraj. Yes.
Oh, number five. Okay. So we're going to go back to number five first. Alicia Squamish, please go ahead. Hi. Can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Okay. So, my name is Alicia Squamish, and I would like to say before I start that my family and I are in mourning right now after the loss of our dear matriarch, Mary Charles. It has been a very hard week, and I've been feeling very heavy inside my heart. Community was very important to my great-grandmother, and this motion has the ability to support and build a stronger, healthy community. with that i support this motion and i'm really happy that counselors or and fry have put this forward i know that both of these counselors have volunteered with the downtown east side emergency hub and seen what food recovery and action looks like by helping serve at their bi-weekly barbecue counselor or has also come to an event where i did a traditional salish He rolled up his sleeves and served and engaged with the people he was serving. A lot of that food was either from the Astoria Garden or recovery donations from Skipper Auto. I'm very proud of these counselors and all the work they do in the community that I've witnessed firsthand. Now, I have worked in the Downtown Eastside as a cook for six years. And without the support of food recovery organizations like the Downtown Eastside Emergency Hub and Food Stash, I would not have been able to stretch the budget to make nourishing food for the people accessing these services. Healthy food helps make healthy people. But food recovery goes beyond the Downtown Eastside. There are grocery programs at neighborhood houses, community centers, notably with Ian Mark Hughes at Britannia, The free fridges, the free pantries, and the house by Copley Orchard that takes leftover donations from the food bank and runs a free grocery store outside of their lot. There are a lot of people stepping up, and it's time for the city to do their part, too. Every single person deserves to have food that lifts them up, regardless of income level, and to think that people go without just because grocery stores would rather waste than find a solution is unacceptable. I'd also like to say that even if the food is unedible, we at the V6A Astoria Gardens work alongside the Downtown Eastside Emergency Hub to run a composting program. This has created jobs and ensures that nothing is going to waste. This composting program is something that could be replicated for other gardens throughout the city. I hope that this motion moves forward. Thank you, my friend.
Thank you, Alicia. Speaker number six, Samar Davijaraj.
Yeah, I'm on the call right now. Can you hear me?
Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Hello, respected mayor and councillors. My name is Samar. I'm 23 years old. I live in Vancouver and I'm calling to support this motion. um this motion makes sense from all angles but firstly my background is i'm a member of rhythmos climaticos a youth-led climate justice organization and i'm involved with mugshare a reusable cup initiative founded here in vancouver i'm also passionate about sustainable food systems and food access which is why this motion matters deeply to me Now from a human perspective, one in five people in BC experience food insecurity and yet every year massive amounts of edible food are thrown out by businesses. When I used to be a student at UBC, I would see long lines for the food bank almost every day and families relying on food distribution organizations just to get by. And the story is same everywhere across Vancouver. I've also spoken directly with some of these food rescue organizations, and many of them are ready and willing to recover more edible surplus food, but they just need stronger systems and collaboration from the city to amp up their scale of operations. This motion would help create that bridge and get good food to people who need it instead of sending it to the landfill. Now, from a climate perspective, food in the landfill produces methane, which can account for 60% of the whole landfill's emissions waste. Now, therefore, this motion means lower emissions, better alignment with Vancouver's climate goals, and more efficient use of our landfill capacity. From a business perspective, we also have strong proof that this works. In California, for example, the state set huge targets to cut organic waste by 75% and recover at least 20% of edible food, all in a short time period. But in only four years, they recovered more than 200,000 tons of food. which was 94% of their recovery target. This program strengthened the local economies, supported jobs and built stronger partnerships between businesses and food recovery groups. But most importantly, this motion, Motion 3, is measured and practical. It doesn't introduce any drastic bans or optimistic targets. It asks staff to study solutions, improve diversion, strengthen partnerships, and help Vancouver meet its own existing climate goals more effectively so that we can make more informed decisions in the future. So this is not a cost burden. It's an investment in economic resilience and community well-being. It's about making the most of the resources that we already produce. So from every perspective, supporting this motion seems like common sense. And I hope that the council can choose Vancouver today and choose this motion. Thank you for your time.
Thank you. Okay. Speaker number seven is Tanya Webkin.
Hi there. Good afternoon. hi yes uh i'm here to speak in favor of this motion uh vancouver has to work towards real and immediate climate solutions and tackling methane gas emissions from organic waste and landfills is an easy to accomplish tax that would greatly improve the city's ability to meet its own climate emergency action plan goals Expanding food recovery and circle economies are going to be the way that we need to move forward. We have to reconsider our entire production, distribution, and consumption systems. 22 to 30% of organic waste in Vancouver ends up in our landfill. This creates that methane gas that people have been talking about that is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. For example, UBC alone emits 29,000 tons of CO2 per year. Approximately 13,000 tons of organic food is wasted annually in Vancouver, and our commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors account for 58% of this total food waste. But businesses also pay for wasted food three times, when they purchase it, when they prepare and store it, and when they throw it away. In France, they allow businesses to recoup 60% of the value of this food in a recovered tax reduction. This shows that there's a variety of benefits that could help support businesses in here as well. Local commercial organic food waste has significant costs at $125 per ton, and these costs are contributing to the economic strain in the food service industry. France is a global leader in food waste reduction, and since 2013, they've reduced their gas emissions while holding corporations accountable, making this possible, and supporting the economies in all areas. This is a report back from staff, so I'm really hopeful that all the councillors will approve this motion. The benefits range from edible food recovery for food security, cost savings to the city and to businesses, job creation reduces greenhouse gas emissions, it enriches local soil with compost, it's reducing pollution, it improves air quality, and it's creating the circle economy that could extend the life of our landfill. We need to get serious about climate change. Please support this motion. Thank you for listening.
Thank you. Speaker number eight is Lucas Troney.
Can you guys hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Okay. Hey, good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for giving me the space to speak here. My name is Lucas Troney. I'm here with Ritmus Climaticos just like summer. And I just wanted to raise... quite quickly in the time that I have to speak. Yeah, just reiterate what a lot of folks have been saying about Vancouver having such a serious food waste problem and how it's inseparable from our climate responsibility, from equity, and obviously our Greenest City commitments as well. A bunch of people already mentioned how so many people in the province are food insecure, how methane is such a damaging gas in comparison to CO2. I also wanted to raise that in the downtown east side and in food banks across the province. Food is needed every single day, and we can't deny that reality of poverty when edible food just continually is thrown out. So, yeah, I know and a lot of us know that Vancouver has an organics ban that was introduced in 2015, but obviously, as someone was just mentioning earlier, it remains the most common item in the garbage with about 22%. um in the latest metro vancouver waste composition studies um there's been progress but like we know that it has been slow um and that puts uh some of our climate targets at risk so a lot of people feel this disconnect already there's a large dumpster diving culture in our city um there's a dumpster diving in metro vancouver facebook group there's multiple online forums like reddit where people share resources for dumpster diving but It remains something that's unsafe and undignified, and it shouldn't be a substitute for a functioning food system. Yeah, as people I mentioned before, there's multiple food recovery organizations, community kitchens, and composting initiatives throughout the city that are ready to receive the food, but they just need this coordination, and they need the data, and the city can be amazing at acting as that bridge. Yeah, the issue is part of our cultural memory in the city as well. There have been documentaries like the one that came out in 2014, Just Eat It, a food waste story, which I recommend everyone that's concerned about this issue to watch. It's a Vancouver film documentary made by a couple that shows how much edible food is discarded in our city every day. And with the affordability and climate crisis that we see these days, this issue, I would say, is no longer something abstract, but it's very much a reality. Yeah, if we're serious about being the greenest city, food waste prevention should be treated as climate action. And I think that policy can help shift norms towards prevention, redistribution, and acceptance of food that isn't always perfect, right? But perhaps those perfection standards are wasteful and increasingly unrealistic in a changing climate and affordability crisis like the one we live in today. Yeah. Thank you so much for listening.
All right. Thank you, Lucas. Speaker number nine is Cody T. DiLulo.
Yeah, we can hear you, Cody. So before you start, as a procedure question, can I ask you if you are a resident of Vancouver?
I'm not a resident of Vancouver.
Okay, that's okay. Please go ahead.
Yeah, so I am a commercial food delivery driver, and I deliver all over Metro Vancouver, including many of the grocery stores within Vancouver itself. And I just wanted to speak in favor of this motion today. So a lot of my job is checking expiry dates for products. I'm like a vendor in grocery stores. and taking these expired or close to expired products off the shelves and that's really ethically challenging for me when I know there are there is a issue with poverty and there is an issue with food waste and increasing methane gas and being a pollutant and then I also wanted to speak in favor of this motion because I When I'm backing my truck up into the loading bay on a day-to-day basis, the food bank people who come to pick up the excess food from grocery stores, they're often showing up at very early hours, 4 a.m., 5 a.m. They're getting maybe a cart or two. of food per store and I know there's so much more food waste in these dumpsters and these people are usually like on living wages or doing it on a volunteer basis with their food banks or community kitchens and there's not a lot of them and the grocery stores don't take it upon themselves to get these people out there it's really there's a heart and soul of these poverty reduction initiatives and um and and and you know the these kitchens and food banks live or die by their efforts um so i i just really want to urge this council today to uh take to vote on this motion because Without these people working and volunteering and working low wages and stuff, we wouldn't really have much infrastructure at all to redistribute this food waste and deal with it in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way. And that's basically my piece. Thank you, Chair. Thank you.
Speaker number 10 is Mark Schussbank.
Hello, can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Oh, great. My name is Mark Schutzbank, and thank you for this time today. And everyone has really echoed the things that I've been thinking about, especially that last speaker. Thank you so much for that. And I also just wanted to reiterate that this sort of work helps to frame what the next 20 years can look like. And we really need to understand what are the opportunities here to rethink our waste system. And I think that's a huge component of really what we need to start having in order to have a system that's going to be working better. And so I leave you with this small poem. There once was a city so green, whose landfills were not meant to be seen. Cut methane, they vowed, with waste rules unbowed, so our climate stays cool, fresh, and clean. And so I hope that you vote in favor of this motion. Thank you.
Thank you. Speaker 11, Fernando Garcia-Crispo Santalo.
Okay. Speaker number 12, Julie Elaine Stresky.
Speaker 13 is Jessica Regan.
Yes, hello there. Yeah, it's great to be here. Thank you so much for welcoming me here. My name is Jessica Regan. I'm the founder and CEO of FoodMesh. We're a Vancouver-based company that helps food recovery organizations. And next month will be our 10th year anniversary. So we have a small sample set of themes that's been evolved over the last 10 years. And one of the things I do want to point out It's the invisible but incredible work that our food recovery organizations are doing every day. And I feel like, you know, I speak in strong support of this motion just because of that work. But they're doing that when they're competing for grants and not really measuring consistently and sharing that information across. So it's really hard to see a full picture of all the incredible work. So in addition to supporting this motion, I really want to, like, Having a look at the funding piece, we talked about circular economy. I think we need to look at the economic model so that these organizations are not competing with each other for funding. We provide predictable revenue streams and we encourage data sharing and tracking so we can better get a glimpse into the problem and the solution space. So that's my time. And yeah, thank you again for bringing this. I support it firmly.
Okay, thank you. Speaker 14, Mona Stilwell.
hello okay is there any doubt that we are solidly in a global climate emergency this isn't just vibes i'm working off of over 2 100 local governments and 39 countries have made climate emergency declarations these governments represent over 1 billion citizens so it's not just you know vibes 60% of landfill methane emissions are from organic waste, 60%. That's a lot. Despite existing organic sand, it's clear a big amount, a large amount of organic materials still entering the waste stream. This motion is something that mayor and council members can easily do to save the planet. I've always wanted to say that phrase. I was in the same commissary kitchen as Ono Catering, who were taking the initiative during COVID to take ugly produce, or unsold expiring produce from wholesalers and turn it into healthy meals for the downtown Eastside. It was admirable, it was done with love and care, and there's so much that is possible when efforts are put together to focus on, sorry, feeding others. As stewards of the city of Vancouver, the traditional lands of the Musqueam, Swamish, and TTsleil-Waututh, I ask... Mayor and council members to please support this motion to direct city staff to report back on feasible options to reduce organic waste into landfills with an emphasis on a multi-pronged approach. A report on high volume commercial producers, a report on waste prevention, a report on food recovery options, and a report on reducing commercial food waste. Thank you. Oh, I am a resident of Vancouver and I support the motion. Thank you.
All right, thank you. So I'm going to go back to the missed speaker. Speaker number two, Matthew Yudin. Hi there. Can you hear me? Yes, we can. Please go ahead. All right.
Hey, thanks, guys. My name is Matthew. Yeah, I'm calling to thank Councillor Oren Fry and their efforts to pass this motion. I happen to work with a lot of great people in the downtown Eastside who lead the existing food recovery efforts we're doing. including evan reeks the downtown east side community hub and jill rackliff at the b6a gardens also shout out to the uh previous caller from food mesh you guys are great um but yeah all together these people divert literal tons of food waste from landfills and they get what they can to feed the hungry We even use the inedible donations to raise our garden beds, to grow fresh vegetables out of those things we can't sell. So this current effort we have is a big thing. These programs are essential to combat not only the environmental impact of food disposal, but the scale of the economic impacts of grocery stores for everyday Vancouverites. We'd love to expand these programs beyond the downtown east side, and this motion would help us do that. um there's even other creative groups like the community free fridge project that doesn't get any funding uh they could use some sort of help to get uh help and you know our volunteers we're currently filling in necessary gap that we can look at supporting with city's help as well um we can become you know realistically we can become remarkable uh leaders uh global leaders do remarkable things in these efforts And working with your residents, you can provide direction and resources that will help us work better with partnerships in grocery stores, wholesalers, and distributors that make up vital parts of our food supply chain. Yeah, also thanks to Cody and Alicia for calling in before me with some vital insights into this as well. So thanks for your consideration, Council, and I hope you vote to pass this motion.
Bye. Thank you. Okay, speaker number three, Chloe Leslie.
Hello, can you hear me?
Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Excellent. Good afternoon, Mayor and Councillors. My name is Chloe Leslie. I'm a Vancouver resident and I am here to support this motion. I believe this motion should be an easy yes. We're not here because we lack research ideas or direction. I believe we're here because the work has already been done and four years later, we're still waiting to implement it. In 2021, the Vancouver Economic Commission, in partnership with Simon Fraser University Food Systems Lab, completed a comprehensive circular economy report. on commercial organic waste. That work was not external to the city. A City of Vancouver project manager and a city social planner actively contributed, reflecting that this issue was already a city priority. This motion does not ask staff to start over or commission new studies. It allows us to move from planning to practical implementation. It asks staff to build on existing work, identify feasible options within current capacity, and clarify where the city can act. In the meantime, large commercial producers continue sending organic waste to the landfill. That waste produces methane, one of the most powerful drivers of near-term emissions. Reducing organic waste remains one of the fastest and most cost-effective climate actions available to us right now. We cannot keep delaying action while citing jurisdictional complexity or waiting for perfect conditions. The framework exists, the policy direction exists within the Zero Waste 2040 and Climate Emergency Action Plan. The city has already invested time and expertise. What's missing is just the follow-through. This motion is intentionally modest. It's realistic and grounded in work already completed. I believe it creates a clear pathway from research to action. If Vancouver is serious about meeting its climate commitments, this is exactly the kind of step we should be taking. I urge you to support this motion. Thank you.
Thank you. Speaker number four is Jill Radcliffe.
No, okay. And then speaker number 11, Fernando Garcia Crispo Santello.
No, okay. Okay, speaker number 12, Julie Elaine Strausky.
Hello, Mayor and Council. I would like to support this motion and echo the comments made already by experts and others in the field. And as stated, the environmental impacts are just really important. And we really have an opportunity to show innovation and leadership in this space. I think this motion is realistic and it demonstrates that council cares about the environment and ultimately about human health and future generations. Thank you for your time. All right. Thank you.
Oh, that's the end of our speakers list. Thank you everyone for speaking to the standing committee and city finance and the services committee members. Is there any discussion? I saw Councillor Kirby on peaceful hatch.
Yeah, thanks, Chair. I have the pleasure, first of all, I'm grateful to Councillor Orr and Councillor Fry for continuing to shine a spotlight on this issue. I have the privilege of serving as the Chair at Metro Vancouver's Zero Waste Committee, and there is a significant piece of work underway right now with respects to updating our solid waste management plan. It's required every 10 years. It's a requirement by the province. And... Even just at our meeting last week or the week before, we've got another one on Thursday. We continue to discuss organics waste, and it is showing up as a consistent component of our waste stream. What I want to see is us get to good solutions here. And so I'm going to suggest a different pathway towards getting to that. And if you want to move us to an amendment, Chair, and then I can speak to it.
Yeah, and that is really recognizing that a lot of the work that is proposed falls under the mandate and the jurisdiction of Metro Vancouver. And then some of the work that's proposed requires provincial legislative changes with respects to regulations around waste disposal. And so I think that that is a great forum for some of the conversations and work to happen. At Thursday's meeting, we're actually going to be seeing and discussing a draft of the upcoming... a new proposed solid waste management plan. There's about 20 actions that are in there with respects to food waste and management. And then in addition to really recognizing the scope of the problem, and there are some folks that sit on a number of advisory committees. We have a public technical advisory committee, including representatives that are passionate about food waste, and that's something that they have been driving in the plan. And one of the things also recognized is the importance of regional collaboration, recognizing that a lot of producers are crossing boundaries in terms of customer service, where if delivery trucks are going, that type of thing. The points were made with respects to the danger of methane and the issues in the landfill. Metro's doing some good work with respects to methane capture at the landfill. Those components are recognized in terms of the need to do more. What I don't want to see is us putting things in place that tackle the problem at a lower level of ambition. Then we could do if we did it regionally and I'm kind of reminded of the analogy when Ride hailing Licensing was coming in and Vancouver decided to kind of go to loan and develop a license And we knew it was going to be an issue with the region and then the following week Sure enough all the other mayors pushed back And we had to take a different tack and do an inter-municipal business license And I think what we need here is really sort of regional approach and guidelines one of the things that is also contemplated is in that plan is opportunities for regional, cross-regional collaboration, recognizing that we want to bring everybody in the region along with the 22 municipalities. And I think that that's really where we will get the biggest impact and bang for our buck. And I think about things like the plastic ban, where that makes the most sense is when we saw provincial legislation coming in, right? And again, a lot of these things do cross over some jurisdictions. where we could have sort of a consistent ban around plastics and sort of move our culture away from that sort of single-use disposable mentality. So I think that I'm fully aligned with the goals of this work. I'm pretty deeply immersed in it right now, given where we are in that trajectory at Metro. But I think that's where the opportunity is to have the conversation. So it's referring the work to Metro, and it's also directing City of Vancouver staff to engage with Metro on opportunities for cross-collaboration amongst the region with exactly the same aspirations that movers of the ocean have, which is to reduce organics waste and the harm of related gases amongst other impacts. Thank you.
Okay, we need a seconder for this amendment. Seconded by Councillor Domenico. Councillor Orr.
Yeah, thanks. I think this certainly keeps the spirit alive of the motion, and I know you've done a lot of work on this with Metro, and I've seen you at different food recovery events, the one with the Food Recovery Network. I know you've done a lot of work on this. I would prefer maybe that this was like an add-on to the motion in terms of sort of... redirecting our staff, you know, to keep those priorities alive. But, you know, in the spirit of sort of moving things along or at least getting this to the attention, even to the higher levels of government, I think, is definitely a workable outcome. So appreciate it. Thanks.
Okay. So seeing no one else on the queue, so let's go to the referral amendment. So please register your vote on the voting panel.
Okay, the referral amendment passed unanimously with Councillor Bligh, Councillor Meiszner, and the mayor's in absent. So we don't need to go back, right? So clerk can just keep on going. It's a referral amendment. We don't need to vote on the main motion, right? Okay, perfect. So since it is a referral amendment, that completes motion three on the agenda. Thanks. The next item is motion four, advancing democratic innovation in Vancouver's municipal elections to increase voter turnout and improve democratic legitimacy. This move is introduced by Councillor Orr. Before we begin this agenda item, if anyone believes they have a conflict of interest, now is the time to declare it. Does anyone have a conflict of interest to disclose? Councillor Orr, you have two minutes to introduce your motion.
Statement Watch
Good afternoon, Mayor and Council. My name is Adam Hawk. I am a 20-year resident of the City of Vancouver. I'm speaking in strong support of the motion to reduce business-generated organic waste as part of Vancouver's Climate Emergency Action Plan. I spent the last 25 years in the organics and specialty grocery distribution business, and I've seen firsthand how much perfectly good food is wasted. Not because it lacks value, but because our systems make disposal easier than prevention or recovery. In the 90s, when best before dates were popularized, something striking happened. Sales of many shelf-stable and perishable items nearly doubled. Not because people were eating more, but because suddenly the garbage can became the best customer. Product that was safe, edible, and nutrition was now treated as waste. The mindset still shapes how food moves through the commercial system. This motion matters because organic waste is a climate issue, not just a waste issue. Methane from landfill organics is one of the fastest ways to worsen near-term climate change, and one of the fastest ways to reduce if we act now. Large commercial generators play an outside role, and improving prevention and diversion here is amongst the most cost-effective climate solutions available to the city this decade. Importantly, Vancouver is not starting from scratch. Organizations like Food Mesh, Too Good to Go, Food Runners, and the Greater Vancouver Food Bank already diverting enormous amounts of edible food from landfill they reduce emissions strain the circular economy and keep keep value in the system as well as being part of the food security solution while this motion wisely does ask staff to build on existing work or Nate with regional partners and focus on prevention accountability and emissions reduction it's not new bureaucracy it's a pragmatic It's aligned with the Climate Emergency Action Plan and Zero Waste 2040 and grounded in real-world operations. Reducing commercial food waste is responsible climate policy, smart economics, and a long overdue improvement in waste management. I urge Council to support this motion. Thank you.
Statement Watch
Okay. So, my name is Alicia Squamish, and I would like to say before I start that my family and I are in mourning right now after the loss of our dear matriarch, Mary Charles. It has been a very hard week, and I've been feeling very heavy inside my heart. Community was very important to my great-grandmother, and this motion has the ability to support and build a stronger, healthy community. with that i support this motion and i'm really happy that counselors or and fry have put this forward i know that both of these counselors have volunteered with the downtown east side emergency hub and seen what food recovery and action looks like by helping serve at their bi-weekly barbecue counselor or has also come to an event where i did a traditional salish He rolled up his sleeves and served and engaged with the people he was serving. A lot of that food was either from the Astoria Garden or recovery donations from Skipper Auto. I'm very proud of these counselors and all the work they do in the community that I've witnessed firsthand. Now, I have worked in the Downtown Eastside as a cook for six years. And without the support of food recovery organizations like the Downtown Eastside Emergency Hub and Food Stash, I would not have been able to stretch the budget to make nourishing food for the people accessing these services. Healthy food helps make healthy people. But food recovery goes beyond the Downtown Eastside. There are grocery programs at neighborhood houses, community centers, notably with Ian Mark Hughes at Britannia, The free fridges, the free pantries, and the house by Copley Orchard that takes leftover donations from the food bank and runs a free grocery store outside of their lot. There are a lot of people stepping up, and it's time for the city to do their part, too. Every single person deserves to have food that lifts them up, regardless of income level, and to think that people go without just because grocery stores would rather waste than find a solution is unacceptable. I'd also like to say that even if the food is unedible, we at the V6A Astoria Gardens work alongside the Downtown Eastside Emergency Hub to run a composting program. This has created jobs and ensures that nothing is going to waste. This composting program is something that could be replicated for other gardens throughout the city. I hope that this motion moves forward. Thank you, my friend.
Statement Watch
Yeah, I'm on the call right now. Can you hear me?
Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Hello, respected mayor and councillors. My name is Samar. I'm 23 years old. I live in Vancouver and I'm calling to support this motion. um this motion makes sense from all angles but firstly my background is i'm a member of rhythmos climaticos a youth-led climate justice organization and i'm involved with mugshare a reusable cup initiative founded here in vancouver i'm also passionate about sustainable food systems and food access which is why this motion matters deeply to me Now from a human perspective, one in five people in BC experience food insecurity and yet every year massive amounts of edible food are thrown out by businesses. When I used to be a student at UBC, I would see long lines for the food bank almost every day and families relying on food distribution organizations just to get by. And the story is same everywhere across Vancouver. I've also spoken directly with some of these food rescue organizations, and many of them are ready and willing to recover more edible surplus food, but they just need stronger systems and collaboration from the city to amp up their scale of operations. This motion would help create that bridge and get good food to people who need it instead of sending it to the landfill. Now, from a climate perspective, food in the landfill produces methane, which can account for 60% of the whole landfill's emissions waste. Now, therefore, this motion means lower emissions, better alignment with Vancouver's climate goals, and more efficient use of our landfill capacity. From a business perspective, we also have strong proof that this works. In California, for example, the state set huge targets to cut organic waste by 75% and recover at least 20% of edible food, all in a short time period. But in only four years, they recovered more than 200,000 tons of food. which was 94% of their recovery target. This program strengthened the local economies, supported jobs and built stronger partnerships between businesses and food recovery groups. But most importantly, this motion, Motion 3, is measured and practical. It doesn't introduce any drastic bans or optimistic targets. It asks staff to study solutions, improve diversion, strengthen partnerships, and help Vancouver meet its own existing climate goals more effectively so that we can make more informed decisions in the future. So this is not a cost burden. It's an investment in economic resilience and community well-being. It's about making the most of the resources that we already produce. So from every perspective, supporting this motion seems like common sense. And I hope that the council can choose Vancouver today and choose this motion. Thank you for your time.
Statement Watch
Hi there. Good afternoon. hi yes uh i'm here to speak in favor of this motion uh vancouver has to work towards real and immediate climate solutions and tackling methane gas emissions from organic waste and landfills is an easy to accomplish tax that would greatly improve the city's ability to meet its own climate emergency action plan goals Expanding food recovery and circle economies are going to be the way that we need to move forward. We have to reconsider our entire production, distribution, and consumption systems. 22 to 30% of organic waste in Vancouver ends up in our landfill. This creates that methane gas that people have been talking about that is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. For example, UBC alone emits 29,000 tons of CO2 per year. Approximately 13,000 tons of organic food is wasted annually in Vancouver, and our commercial, industrial, and institutional sectors account for 58% of this total food waste. But businesses also pay for wasted food three times, when they purchase it, when they prepare and store it, and when they throw it away. In France, they allow businesses to recoup 60% of the value of this food in a recovered tax reduction. This shows that there's a variety of benefits that could help support businesses in here as well. Local commercial organic food waste has significant costs at $125 per ton, and these costs are contributing to the economic strain in the food service industry. France is a global leader in food waste reduction, and since 2013, they've reduced their gas emissions while holding corporations accountable, making this possible, and supporting the economies in all areas. This is a report back from staff, so I'm really hopeful that all the councillors will approve this motion. The benefits range from edible food recovery for food security, cost savings to the city and to businesses, job creation reduces greenhouse gas emissions, it enriches local soil with compost, it's reducing pollution, it improves air quality, and it's creating the circle economy that could extend the life of our landfill. We need to get serious about climate change. Please support this motion. Thank you for listening.
Statement Watch
Okay. Hey, good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for giving me the space to speak here. My name is Lucas Troney. I'm here with Ritmus Climaticos just like summer. And I just wanted to raise... quite quickly in the time that I have to speak. Yeah, just reiterate what a lot of folks have been saying about Vancouver having such a serious food waste problem and how it's inseparable from our climate responsibility, from equity, and obviously our Greenest City commitments as well. A bunch of people already mentioned how so many people in the province are food insecure, how methane is such a damaging gas in comparison to CO2. I also wanted to raise that in the downtown east side and in food banks across the province. Food is needed every single day, and we can't deny that reality of poverty when edible food just continually is thrown out. So, yeah, I know and a lot of us know that Vancouver has an organics ban that was introduced in 2015, but obviously, as someone was just mentioning earlier, it remains the most common item in the garbage with about 22%. um in the latest metro vancouver waste composition studies um there's been progress but like we know that it has been slow um and that puts uh some of our climate targets at risk so a lot of people feel this disconnect already there's a large dumpster diving culture in our city um there's a dumpster diving in metro vancouver facebook group there's multiple online forums like reddit where people share resources for dumpster diving but It remains something that's unsafe and undignified, and it shouldn't be a substitute for a functioning food system. Yeah, as people I mentioned before, there's multiple food recovery organizations, community kitchens, and composting initiatives throughout the city that are ready to receive the food, but they just need this coordination, and they need the data, and the city can be amazing at acting as that bridge. Yeah, the issue is part of our cultural memory in the city as well. There have been documentaries like the one that came out in 2014, Just Eat It, a food waste story, which I recommend everyone that's concerned about this issue to watch. It's a Vancouver film documentary made by a couple that shows how much edible food is discarded in our city every day. And with the affordability and climate crisis that we see these days, this issue, I would say, is no longer something abstract, but it's very much a reality. Yeah, if we're serious about being the greenest city, food waste prevention should be treated as climate action. And I think that policy can help shift norms towards prevention, redistribution, and acceptance of food that isn't always perfect, right? But perhaps those perfection standards are wasteful and increasingly unrealistic in a changing climate and affordability crisis like the one we live in today. Yeah. Thank you so much for listening.
Statement Watch
I'm not a resident of Vancouver.
Okay, that's okay. Please go ahead.
Yeah, so I am a commercial food delivery driver, and I deliver all over Metro Vancouver, including many of the grocery stores within Vancouver itself. And I just wanted to speak in favor of this motion today. So a lot of my job is checking expiry dates for products. I'm like a vendor in grocery stores. and taking these expired or close to expired products off the shelves and that's really ethically challenging for me when I know there are there is a issue with poverty and there is an issue with food waste and increasing methane gas and being a pollutant and then I also wanted to speak in favor of this motion because I When I'm backing my truck up into the loading bay on a day-to-day basis, the food bank people who come to pick up the excess food from grocery stores, they're often showing up at very early hours, 4 a.m., 5 a.m. They're getting maybe a cart or two. of food per store and I know there's so much more food waste in these dumpsters and these people are usually like on living wages or doing it on a volunteer basis with their food banks or community kitchens and there's not a lot of them and the grocery stores don't take it upon themselves to get these people out there it's really there's a heart and soul of these poverty reduction initiatives and um and and and you know the these kitchens and food banks live or die by their efforts um so i i just really want to urge this council today to uh take to vote on this motion because Without these people working and volunteering and working low wages and stuff, we wouldn't really have much infrastructure at all to redistribute this food waste and deal with it in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable way. And that's basically my piece. Thank you, Chair. Thank you.
Statement Watch
Oh, great. My name is Mark Schutzbank, and thank you for this time today. And everyone has really echoed the things that I've been thinking about, especially that last speaker. Thank you so much for that. And I also just wanted to reiterate that this sort of work helps to frame what the next 20 years can look like. And we really need to understand what are the opportunities here to rethink our waste system. And I think that's a huge component of really what we need to start having in order to have a system that's going to be working better. And so I leave you with this small poem. There once was a city so green, whose landfills were not meant to be seen. Cut methane, they vowed, with waste rules unbowed, so our climate stays cool, fresh, and clean. And so I hope that you vote in favor of this motion. Thank you.
Statement Watch
Yes, hello there. Yeah, it's great to be here. Thank you so much for welcoming me here. My name is Jessica Regan. I'm the founder and CEO of FoodMesh. We're a Vancouver-based company that helps food recovery organizations. And next month will be our 10th year anniversary. So we have a small sample set of themes that's been evolved over the last 10 years. And one of the things I do want to point out It's the invisible but incredible work that our food recovery organizations are doing every day. And I feel like, you know, I speak in strong support of this motion just because of that work. But they're doing that when they're competing for grants and not really measuring consistently and sharing that information across. So it's really hard to see a full picture of all the incredible work. So in addition to supporting this motion, I really want to, like, Having a look at the funding piece, we talked about circular economy. I think we need to look at the economic model so that these organizations are not competing with each other for funding. We provide predictable revenue streams and we encourage data sharing and tracking so we can better get a glimpse into the problem and the solution space. So that's my time. And yeah, thank you again for bringing this. I support it firmly.
Statement Watch
hello okay is there any doubt that we are solidly in a global climate emergency this isn't just vibes i'm working off of over 2 100 local governments and 39 countries have made climate emergency declarations these governments represent over 1 billion citizens so it's not just you know vibes 60% of landfill methane emissions are from organic waste, 60%. That's a lot. Despite existing organic sand, it's clear a big amount, a large amount of organic materials still entering the waste stream. This motion is something that mayor and council members can easily do to save the planet. I've always wanted to say that phrase. I was in the same commissary kitchen as Ono Catering, who were taking the initiative during COVID to take ugly produce, or unsold expiring produce from wholesalers and turn it into healthy meals for the downtown Eastside. It was admirable, it was done with love and care, and there's so much that is possible when efforts are put together to focus on, sorry, feeding others. As stewards of the city of Vancouver, the traditional lands of the Musqueam, Swamish, and TTsleil-Waututh, I ask... Mayor and council members to please support this motion to direct city staff to report back on feasible options to reduce organic waste into landfills with an emphasis on a multi-pronged approach. A report on high volume commercial producers, a report on waste prevention, a report on food recovery options, and a report on reducing commercial food waste. Thank you. Oh, I am a resident of Vancouver and I support the motion. Thank you.
Statement Watch
Hey, thanks, guys. My name is Matthew. Yeah, I'm calling to thank Councillor Oren Fry and their efforts to pass this motion. I happen to work with a lot of great people in the downtown Eastside who lead the existing food recovery efforts we're doing. including evan reeks the downtown east side community hub and jill rackliff at the b6a gardens also shout out to the uh previous caller from food mesh you guys are great um but yeah all together these people divert literal tons of food waste from landfills and they get what they can to feed the hungry We even use the inedible donations to raise our garden beds, to grow fresh vegetables out of those things we can't sell. So this current effort we have is a big thing. These programs are essential to combat not only the environmental impact of food disposal, but the scale of the economic impacts of grocery stores for everyday Vancouverites. We'd love to expand these programs beyond the downtown east side, and this motion would help us do that. um there's even other creative groups like the community free fridge project that doesn't get any funding uh they could use some sort of help to get uh help and you know our volunteers we're currently filling in necessary gap that we can look at supporting with city's help as well um we can become you know realistically we can become remarkable uh leaders uh global leaders do remarkable things in these efforts And working with your residents, you can provide direction and resources that will help us work better with partnerships in grocery stores, wholesalers, and distributors that make up vital parts of our food supply chain. Yeah, also thanks to Cody and Alicia for calling in before me with some vital insights into this as well. So thanks for your consideration, Council, and I hope you vote to pass this motion.
Statement Watch
Hello, can you hear me?
Yes, we can. Please go ahead.
Excellent. Good afternoon, Mayor and Councillors. My name is Chloe Leslie. I'm a Vancouver resident and I am here to support this motion. I believe this motion should be an easy yes. We're not here because we lack research ideas or direction. I believe we're here because the work has already been done and four years later, we're still waiting to implement it. In 2021, the Vancouver Economic Commission, in partnership with Simon Fraser University Food Systems Lab, completed a comprehensive circular economy report. on commercial organic waste. That work was not external to the city. A City of Vancouver project manager and a city social planner actively contributed, reflecting that this issue was already a city priority. This motion does not ask staff to start over or commission new studies. It allows us to move from planning to practical implementation. It asks staff to build on existing work, identify feasible options within current capacity, and clarify where the city can act. In the meantime, large commercial producers continue sending organic waste to the landfill. That waste produces methane, one of the most powerful drivers of near-term emissions. Reducing organic waste remains one of the fastest and most cost-effective climate actions available to us right now. We cannot keep delaying action while citing jurisdictional complexity or waiting for perfect conditions. The framework exists, the policy direction exists within the Zero Waste 2040 and Climate Emergency Action Plan. The city has already invested time and expertise. What's missing is just the follow-through. This motion is intentionally modest. It's realistic and grounded in work already completed. I believe it creates a clear pathway from research to action. If Vancouver is serious about meeting its climate commitments, this is exactly the kind of step we should be taking. I urge you to support this motion. Thank you.
Statement Watch
Hello, Mayor and Council. I would like to support this motion and echo the comments made already by experts and others in the field. And as stated, the environmental impacts are just really important. And we really have an opportunity to show innovation and leadership in this space. I think this motion is realistic and it demonstrates that council cares about the environment and ultimately about human health and future generations. Thank you for your time. All right. Thank you.