Attention drawn to food wastage as thousands of oranges discarded at Metro Vancouver landfill.

At a disposal site in North Vancouver, numerous individuals came across a surplus of oranges, seemingly in perfect condition. Surprisingly, the fruit hadn’t gone bad; it had simply ripened too early for the holiday season, leading a food broker to dispose of them. According to a source, the disposal rate was significant, with at least one dump truck load arriving daily for the past two months, as confirmed by an employee at the facility.

Metro Vancouver, the operator of the North Shore Recycling and Waste Centre, acknowledged the substantial quantity of fruit being discarded as organic waste at the facility. Paul Henderson, the general manager of solid waste services for Metro, noted that while it’s regrettable to witness food wastage, there are no regulations against accepting edible items.

The regional district emphasizes the importance of diverting preventable food waste, with active support from organizations like Food Mesh and the National Zero Waste Council. Henderson stated that the solid waste services team is actively reaching out to the company responsible for the orange disposal in an effort to connect them with food recovery resources.