With the sun shining and clear skies, the Similkameen's food hub welcomed the United Way of BC's regional coordinator for a tour on Feb. 11 as it gears up for a busy year. 

The Ntamtqen Community Garden, located on Lower Similkameen Indian Band land was established in 2023, and expanded upon a farm that had operated for over a decade. 

Funding from the Ministry of Health and the United Way BC launched the food hub program, which provided support to the farm to transform it and address food insecurity for members of the LSIB who have lost access to many of their traditional hunting and foraging areas. 

The goal for 2025 is to finish building a processing facility on the 7.5 acre farm, in addition to continuing to grow food and expand the rest of the site's infrastructure. 

The facility is intended house the food hub's equipment and provide space for staff and volunteers to process both what is grown on the property and to help the surrounding Indigenous community. 

In addition to funding from the United Way BC for the site's operations, Weyerhauser has provided some funding for the processing facility, however fundraising is still ongoing. 

More information about the Ntamtqen Community Garden can be found at its website,  , including how to get involved as a volunteer..