OGO and Fruit Tree Project Partnership Sees Huge Success

The Okanagan Car Share Co-op and the Okanagan Fruit Tree Project have teamed up and the partnership will help those in need in the community.

Photo Credit: Okanagan Fruit Tree Project

Members of the Fruit Tree Project have had access to the OGO truck this season which allowed them to pick and deliver more than twice the amount of apples than if they were only using their usual vehicles. This has allowed the group to make a significant amount of fruit that would otherwise go to waste go towards use.

“We feel extremely fortunate at the Okanagan Fruit Tree Project to have the opportunity to be a member of the OGO carshare” said Casey Hamilton, Board President and Founder of the Okanagan Fruit Tree Project.

Photo Credit: Okanagan Car Share Co-op

The partnership also enabled the Fruit Tree Project to avoid having to purchase a truck themselves. The group’s only expense was paying for accessing the truck when they needed it, which helped keep costs down for the not for profit.

“We saw the collaboration between the Okanagan Fruit Tree Project and OGO as a natural fit and we are very excited to be a part of this wonderful initiative in our community” said Christian Brandt, Executive Director of OGO. “This partnership was made possible through a grant from the Central Okanagan Foundation that enabled OGO to provide the Okanagan Fruit Tree Project with a co-op membership in the carshare. Providing access to a truck, the FTP was able to pick and deliver more fruits and vegetables to less fortunate people in our community.”

Photo Credit: Okanagan Fruit Tree Project

This season volunteers picked more than 34,000 pounds of unwanted fruit that would have otherwise gone to waste. All of the picked fruit is donated to charitable community groups and a share also goes back to the volunteers and tree owners.