SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- The installation of the solar canopy has been completed at Cultivate Food Rescue's South Bend facility through its capital campaign.

The final phase of this expansion transformed the organization's capacity to serve communities across Elkhart, St. Joseph, and Marshall counties.

This was a $1 million project, and it started with funding for the initial deposit from South Bend's Energy and Solar Savings Initiative. The solar canopy will save Cultivate $33,000 annually in energy costs which the project demonstrates commitment to sustainability.

"The savings that they'll have on their electric bills from this carport, they'll be able to invest right back into their core mission, right back into providing food for those in need," said South Bend Mayor James Mueller. 

Executive Director at and Co-founder of Cultivate Food Rescue Jim Conklin sees the project as not only a way to save energy, but a way to have a positive impact on the climate.

"This project represents the culmination of a vision to create a sustainable, community-powered solution to hunger and food waste. Food rescue is a climate action – every pound diverted keeps methane out of the atmosphere while feeding people instead. Fueling this climate action with a sustainable energy source is doubling down on our commitment to sustainability," Conklin said.

"With a prior career in accounting and finance, I am also fond that every dollar we save on energy costs is another dollar we can invest in rescuing food and getting nutritious meals to neighbors who need them most. We were also able to bring a little over $400,000 in federal funds back to our local community with this project."

The projects within the capital campaign included the opening of a volunteer meal packaging facility in Elkhart, Cultivate's 22,000 square-foot cold storage facility, parking lot improvements, and renovation of Cultivate's original building.

"Every part of this capital campaign, from our cold storage facility to this solar canopy, has been made possible by our incredible community of supporters, volunteers, and partners," added Conklin. “Especially, the Kanczuzewski family who have been long-term supporters of our mission, and we are so thankful for their support on the project, " said Conklin.

To learn more about the capital campaign and Cultivate Food Rescue can be found online.

"This will pay off more and more in the future," Conklin said.

"So, there's a lot of good cases that you can make here by investing in something like this, simply using having a parking space and taking non utilized space to do something productive with to help people in our community that are struggling. I just think there's just a ton of wins with this project."