CHARM Hub sprouts in ‘food desert’

A new grocery store in Winnipeg’s Elmwood neighbourhood aims to improve the lives of community members by offering food at low prices.

The Chalmers Neighbourhood Renewal Corp. recently opened the CHARM Hub. Located at 301 Ottawa Ave., the store offers canned goods, dry goods, dairy, frozen foods and a limited amount of fresh produce.

Food security has long been a priority at the renewal corporation, said executive director Leilani Esteban-Villarba. She described Elmwood as “a food desert” and noted one of the grocery stores nearest to the community her organization serves is more than a kilometre away.

“(The distance makes it) harder to access, and especially hard to access for people who have mobility challenges or who are older,” she said. “It’s hard to take a bus or take a cab or find transportation … and if you have children in strollers, it’s even harder.”

The new store is an extension of the renewal corporation’s BAG (“Better access to groceries”) program, which offers registered participants low-cost fruits and vegetables every Tuesday. The program was launched in 2016 and now has more than 900 participants, Esteban-Villarba said.

The renewal corporation has offered an additional program in recent months, BAG Plus, which gives recipients access to select pantry items along with their vegetables.

“We realized that … there was a huge need for essential items being available throughout the week,” Esteban-Villarba said.

Earlier this year, the renewal corporation purchased a two-storey building at the corner of Ottawa Avenue and Brazier Street for $500,000. CHARM (Chalmers Housing and Access to Resources and Meats) opened on the first floor on Oct. 6.

The CHARM Hub offers food at a low cost through community partnerships, including with the Trevor and Hayley’s No Frills store on Henderson Highway.

The renewal corporation buys the items in bulk, often at a discount, and then sells them for what it paid. The customer ends up paying amounts equal to the sale prices in larger grocery stores, Esteban-Villarba said.

The store is open to everyone, said Michael Onwuka, store manager. “Our goal is to provide groceries as cheap as we can for anyone who lives in the area or anyone who needs to save money.”

The CHARM Hub has opened at a time when Canadians are spending nearly 30 per cent more on groceries than they did seven years ago.

According to an RBC report published in August, average annual spending on food and non-alcoholic beverages rose from just under $7,400 in 2019 to around $9,600 — about $180 per month. Over that same period, average household disposable income increased roughly $23,000, or about $1,900 a month.

Still, food costs are a much greater burden for lowest-income Canadian households, the report noted, with food and non-alcoholic beverage spending accounting for nearly one-quarter of their disposable income. Average disposable income growth for households in the lowest income quintile has also been lower, up $7,300 between 2019 and 2025.

The response to the CHARM Hub over the last week has been positive, Onwuka said. “People tell us they like what we’re trying to do and that they will support us as much as they can.”

The renewal corporation is continually assessing the community’s needs and it is open to recommendations for improving the CHARM Hub, Esteban-Villarba added.

“We knew we needed to open so we did, despite the fact that our shelves are not completely full,” she said. “They will get fuller as the days go by.”

The CHARM Hub is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The renewal corporation plans to add additional services to the building in the coming months, Esteban-Villarba said, including housing resources.

aaron.epp@winnipegfreepress.com