Okanagan College juiced about FruitSnaps initiative

The award-winning Okanagan College Enactus project dubbed FruitSnaps is now running as a social enterprise after the student-run team recently launched apple juice boxes.

An abundance of unpicked apples this fall has allowed the program to move to the next step. Students, staff, alumni and community members helped pick over 13,000 pounds of apples that would have become windfall waste.

The program is now marketing 400 cases of five-litre boxes of fresh apple juice locally and online for purchase. All proceeds go back into the program.

In addition to the rapid growth of the project, the team also hosted a Grade 5 class in the field from cole Beairsto Elementary in Vernon, teaching students about food security, environmental protection and helping those in need. The class helped socially-distanced to pick apples to support their own school breakfast program.

“Despite the many personal and logistical challenges brought on by COVID, this team continues to adapt and push forward, united by their commitment to help those in need,” Okanagan College School of Business instructor Andrew Klingel said.

FruitSnaps will continue to produce and deliver dried apple products to schools in the Okanagan throughout the winter. With the help of the North Okanagan Valley Gleaners, apples were converted into over 20,000 servings, which go to local schools, food banks and Indigenous communities.

To learn more about the work FruitSnaps is doing, go here. To purchase the newly-launched FruitSnaps apple juice, visit Lakeview Market in Kelowna, Triumph Coffee or Soul Studios in Vernon, or online at fruitsnaps.square.site.