Good Greens program celebrating multiple milestones

Shane Peters, Program Manager of Good Greens (left) stands with Ward 3 city councillor Renaldo Agostino (right) to celebrate milestones of the Good Greens Food Reclamation Program. Nov. 18, 2025. (Rob Hindi/AM800 News)

A local food program is celebrating multiple milestones.

The Good Greens Food Reclamation Program, an initiative of the Downtown Windsor Business Improvement Association (DWBIA) and the Downtown Windsor Farmers’ Market, continues to make an impact by reclaiming unsold good to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and support vulnerable community members in the city’s core.

In 2025, Good Greens has reached a number of new milestones, including redistributing over 11,200 pounds of fresh produce, over 2,800 baked goods, and 15 litres of preserves like jams and honey. Due to this redistribution, nearly $15,000 has been reinvested into local food producers.

The program has served over 15,000 meals to residents facing food insecurity in the downtown core such as the Downtown Mission, Feeding Windsor-Essex, the Salvation Army Centre for Hope, the Windsor Youth Centre, among others.

These accomplishments have earned the program international recognition. The Good Greens program has been presented with a Downtown Achievement Pinnacle Award by the International Downtown Association for the program’s leadership and innovation.

Shane Peters, Program Manager of Good Greens, said he’s proud of the work done throughout the year.

“We also reclaimed over 5,000 kilograms of fruits and veggies, on top of fruits and veggies we’ve reclaimed 396 hearty goods, and 2,400 sweet treats... so a lot of baked goods as well, spending over $4,000 on baked goods, and over $10,000 on produce.”

He said they have a routine at the end of every Farmers’ Market.

“Our volunteer team goes around and talks to our partnered vendors... whatever surplus they have, or whatever unsold goods they have at the end of the day, that is what we’ll buy off of them at a discounted rate. And with that, we’ll bring it back to our office, reorganize it, and distribute it to our partners who serve the community.”

Peters said as an environmental policy graduate, he wants to focus on sustainability in his career.

“This program has been a phenomenal opportunity to really put my skills to use, hone my skills and be able to manage something greater than myself, and from here, I’m just looking to continue that sustainability work and keep doing things that green our community, green our downtown, and make our downtown more livable and enjoyable for everyone here.”

To date, the program has turned over 23,500 pounds of food into over 31,400 meals, preventing an estimated 10 to 13 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

The program has received $14,000 in local support from the Windsor Essex Community Foundation to continue operations throughout 2026.

The program started in Oct. 2023.