A news story from Regina has some community members wondering if a similar project could occur here.

Regina's food bank can now grow it's own produce thanks to 48 garden towers that grow nutritious, vegetables all year long. Regina received a $100,000 grant toward the project that allows them to grow and provide, healthy, nutritious vegetables to users.

Jayena Collins, with Juice Plus, says garden towers would be a great resource, to help add fresh produce to local food banks.

"A community garden specifically for Morley and Cochrane communities would enrich lives. We could help with the nourishment of food, herbicide and pesticide free, and help with all the health conditions we are seeing, especially diabetes, which is high in both communities."

Collins points out that the government supports health conditions after they happen, so if can have an initiative that is proactive with health, why not explore it?

"If we as communities could step up and donate to build a greenhouse and give them tower gardens, I think it would be absolutely amazing."

Nayo Snow, Manager, of the Iyahrhe Nakoda Food Bank, says demand has gone up. Morley's donations come from a warehouse in Calgary and sometimes all the food bank has to give out is junk food.

"We get our transports from Calgary Food Bank, we pay for our transports and they give us our food and most of the time, half of it is garbage. It is mostly junk food, houseware items, and less food."

Snow receives $1000 a month to spend on fresh food and while they do their best to stretch it out...it just is not enough. Snow feels they would need two to three times that amount to supply the 30-50 baskets they give out three times weekly.

Cochrane Food Bank Co Chair Debbie Howard agrees a project like this could be extremely beneficial. 

"It would definitely be beneficial to look at. We try to hand out the most nutritious and healthy stuff that we can, produce would be wonderful if we could do it."

Collins imagines we would need roughly 30-40 towers to supply 5000 people with fresh produce all year round. The tower gardens can grow anything that grows above ground (minus bushes).

"Leafy greens, herbs, traditional Aboriginal herbs, fresh lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, fresh salad every day or weekly however they want to supply the community."

Cochrane Now approached MP Blake Richards to see if a federal grant opportunity would be able to spearhead a project of this nature here.

"There would be a lot of benefits. It is also an opportunity for people to be involved in helping and I think there is something that should be looked at there. That seems like a great type of initiative."

The tower gardens do not use soil instead they use intervals of water and air to grow.

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