Who We Are
Fraser Valley Gleaners Society (FVG) was established in 1999 as a registered society in BC. The concept was modeled after our sister organization, Okanagan Gleaners, and was initiated in the Fraser Valley by a small group of Christian believers who understood the incredible potential for locally available produce.
In May of 2001, a partnership with Mennonite Central Committee of BC was created to help fulfill the mission of The Gleaners – this agreement resulted in FVG building a production facility on land owned by the MCC. In August 2012 the Gleaners purchased the 10.5 acre property from MCCBC.
As a registered Canadian charity, FVG is both volunteer-run and donor-driven. On a daily basis, volunteers from many walks of life give of their time and energy to slice, dice, scrape, and mix our product.
Fresh and frozen vegetable produce and apples are donated by a committed and growing set of produce partners. FVG operating costs are completely covered by the generous donations of our financial partners made up of individuals, foundations, and corporate sponsors .
What We Do
In short, we receive produce, chop, slice and dice, dry and mix, and then release our finished product into the hands of reliable, reputable distribution partners.
Fresh and frozen produce is picked up by our volunteer drivers on a daily basis. The volunteer staff next transform this produce into a cut-up, ready-for-the-dryer mix that will spend anywhere from 8 to 10 hours in an industrial-size drying unit. The dried product is then scraped and barreled in anticipation of a future “mixing” date.
Once we have an entire season’s worth of dried items for our soup mix, the mixing lines are set up and several of the winter months are devoted to transforming individual barrels of vegetables into a tasty just-add-water soup mix.
In this same time period, we also complete the bagging of dried apple snacks.
Where It Goes
FVG Soup Mix and FVG Apple Snacks are distributed throughout the developing world. In recent years our product has made its way to over 40 countries. In order to ensure that each bag of soup mix is distributed into the hands of those in greatest need, we work with a variety of distribution networks - including reputable relief and development agencies, individual missionaries, and short-term outreach teams. Regardless of the distribution partnership, the process begins with a completed application form received and approved by FVG.