Supporting local, sustainable, affordable food at UBC

Since 1997, UBC Sprouts has endeavoured to bring sustainable and affordable food to the UBC and surrounding community. From our humble roots as a bulk buying club, we grew into the organization we are today: a 100% student-run non-profit, sustainable food initiative. UBC Sprouts operates two cafes, a bulk buying program, a by-donation lunch made from salvaged produce (Community Eats), free workshops, and a weekly produce box (Sprouts Box).

Our primary cafe, Sprouts, has been under renovation for the past two years. We are so excited for our new space to finally open! The renovated location in the UBC Life Building will increase our ability to provide local, affordable food, an expanded menu, more workshops and an inclusive community space! However, with a new space comes a lot of new equipment and furniture...

Sprouts circa 2013... Remember how cramped that was?

That is why we need your help!

Our goal of $10,000 will go towards new equipment and outfitting our space with new furniture. In line with our goals of waste reduction, we will source as much as possible from high-quality restaurant equipment resellers and look for gently used furniture to maintain the same welcoming vibe of our old location.

Our equipment wishlist: New coffee urns! Industrial Steamer! Blenders! Shiny new dishwasher! Big ol' display fridge! And an equally large walk-in fridge!

If we exceed our goal and reach $15,000, we will be able to purchase a communal long table made of reclaimed wood! If we reach $20,000 we will be able to get an espresso machine!

UBC Sprouts Initiatives

1) Community Eats - a by donation lunch made from salvage produce, BYOC (Bring Your Own Container)!
2) Bulk Buying Club - purchase locally sourced, organic dry goods at prices much cheaper than regular grocery stores
3) Educational Workshops - workshops on a variety of topics, ranging from cooking to environmental sustainability to zero-waste DIY's and everything in between!
4) Sprouts Box - a weekly produce box full of local fruits and veggies, hand chosen for you!
5) Seedlings Cafe - an offshoot of Sprouts, in the penthouse of the Thea Koerner house
6) Sprouts Cafe - opening Sept. 2018! Stew, baked goods, and some more surprises!

Sprouts operates on the principles of community, sustainability and accessibility. Our family of 25 board members & 150 volunteers are committed to making local, sustainable, healthy food more accessible to the UBC community. We believe that we can create a sense of community by cooking, laughing, sharing a meal together, and engaging with our local food system.

Help us continue to do the work we've done in the past year!

We have some pretty sweet rewards lined up!

We have some awesome rewards to thank you for contributing, ranging from personalized veggie pun ecards to opportunities to immortalize yourself on the walls of the new Sprouts store (also doubles as an advertising opportunity to the thousands of UBC Students!). Check out all of the rewards we have on the right-hand sidebar! (or click the Rewards tab to the left if on mobile)

Note - all of our perks are either available online or pick up in person, if you are not in the Vancouver area, consider purchasing this as a gift for a friend or contact us (at info@ubcsprouts.ca) and we can try to make something work!

Sprouts Boxes are weekly local and organic produce boxes available for 10 weeks from September to December. They are filled with fruit and vegetables from within British Columbia and Northern Washington. We offer these subscription boxes to not only make healthy and sustainably produced food affordable and accessible to the UBC community but to also support local food producers. Each week you, or someone you have nominated, can receive either a small box to feed 1-3 people or a large box to feed 3-4 people. They are available for weekly pick up at UBC.

Make sure to check your junk mail box for the email!! For the donation levels that have perk pick up options in Vancouver, you will receive an email regarding pick up days (likely a few days in July and August, and then pick up in store starting September). If you're not in Vancouver you can still receive all of the online benefits of the donation level and can opt out of the pickup perks.

Guaranteed opening!

We are guaranteed this space to open in September 2018 no matter what, so now it is up to all of you to fill it with all the goodies! The success of this campaign will help determine just how kick ass our new space is!

Other ways to help

Share our crowd funder on social media, tell your friends about it and come visit our existing cafe - Seedlings (6371 Crescent Road). We would be happy to answer any questions you may have.

If you or someone you know of would be willing to donate restaurant equipment, please contact info@ubcsprouts.ca.

Additionally, if you would like to discuss the possibility of a more sizable donation requiring a charitable tax receipt, please contact info@ubcsprouts.ca

Help us make our dream a reality! For more details on UBC Sprouts, check out our website.

Thanks to Joyce Liao for the amazing illustrations!