A few years ago, small-scale farms in Montreal’s West Island, motivated by their passion for farming yet weighed down by the significant challenges of the agricultural sector, came to realize they were all facing the same major issues. As small-scale operations, these obstacles were particularly daunting. The costs associated with investing in equipment and facilities, such as cold storage rooms for crops, are often out of reach for most of them. Additionally, while farm managers are highly adaptable, they often find themselves overwhelmed by the numerous responsibilities they must juggle, forcing them to make tough choices about time allocation. Time and again, they end up having to decrease the hours spent on marketing and promoting their products, which limits their potential for growth.
In 2021, following extensive discussions, these farms decide to pursue collaboration instead of individual struggle. Driven by the desire to unite and support each other, they create the food hub L’aube. This food hub, founded as a nonprofit organization by the farms themselves, has the primary goal of organizing collaboration among its members to ease their daily operations and boost their collective success. In practice, the food hub will take responsibility for coordinating specific tasks collectively, rather than leaving them to be handled by each farm individually. As a result, through L’aube, the farms can come together to support one another in implementing specific initiatives, enabling them to share certain costs rather than bearing them alone.
From the outset of this initiative, the participating farms decided to unite to supply larger clients, whom they would not normally be able to reach individually. By joining forces, they aimed to provide fresh, local, and organic fruits and vegetables to major Montreal institutions such as hospitals and universities. The food hub L’aube took on the task of structuring a professional offer for institutions that typically source exclusively from large distributors, providing them with a thoughtful alternative.
Although the potential of such an alliance quickly became apparent to its members, the food hub also faced significant obstacles from the start. Managing orders and sales turned out to be a significant logistical challenge. Acting as the primary point of contact for customers, the food hub needed to streamline the logistical puzzle that institutional managers face when planning menus and making purchases. A straightforward and efficient approach had to be developed—one that could swiftly update managers on available produce and facilitate the transfer of their orders to the farms.
"Developing digital tools for managing orders and sales can be very costly for projects attempting to build them from scratch. It's not uncommon for their development to impede a project's success," says Louis Lafortune, L’aube's former Executive Director.
While seeking solutions to this issue, L’aube discovered Arrivage, a Quebec-based social enterprise that developed a platform for managing the sales of local produce to professionals like institutions, restaurants, and grocery stores.
A Unique Partnership in the Province
In 2022, a pilot project is launched to formalize the collaboration between Arrivage and L’aube. A synergy emerges between the two organizations—on one hand, an entity closely connected to the current needs of producers and buyers, and on the other, a group with advanced digital expertise.
Thibault Renouf, founder of Arrivage, recounts:
"Since 2019, we have been developing the Arrivage platform alongside producers and professionals in the food sector to bridge the gap between supply and demand. Most of our food travels thousands of kilometers before being consumed, while local farmers struggle to find markets locally."
In 2023, a significant funding granted by the Conseil québécois de la coopération et de la mutualité (CQCM) paves the way for an unprecedented and ambitious project: the two organizations will collaborate on the creation of innovative digital tools, specifically tailored to collective structures. Arrivage then provides its team of developers to improve its platform, adapting it to better meet the needs of collective marketing projects. With the combined expertise of both parties, the platform is customized to aggregate and structure the produce offerings from a group of distinct farms. Its features are further optimized to simplify L’aube's daily operations, serving as an information bridge between the involved parties. Together, the two organizations join forces to make life easier for farmers and institutional managers, making coordination easier for everyone involved.
Digital Technologies Serving the Agricultural Sector
There are already several online platforms designed to facilitate the purchase of fresh farm produce. However, the majority of these platforms are aimed at supplying individual consumers, as opposed to institutions. Moreover, they are far from suited to the constantly changing reality of small local farms. These platforms -particularly online sales tools- require continuous updates and maintenance, which can put a heavy burden on farm managers, both in terms of time and financial resources. Consequently, their practicality and potential are constrained for small-scale local farms.
This is why having a tool designed and developed locally in Quebec, with active feedback from its users, marks a significant advancement. Having invested six years in developing a local platform, Arrivage assembles a team of engineers developing a digital platform specifically designed for Quebec's unique context.
"When you see how easy it is to order a wide variety of fruits and vegetables through a simple tool like Arrivage, institutions can rest assured that sourcing locally isn't so complicated."
— Brigitte Lastrade, Head of Food Services at Villa Medica Rehabilitation Hospital.
A Great Potential for Other Regions and Projects
Although there are other food hubs in Quebec, there is currently no initiative equivalent to the alliance between L’aube and Arrivage in the province. Continuously growing, the food hub, which now includes eight certified organic farms, supplies local fruits and vegetables to 16 institutions, serving more than 600 children and 9,000 beneficiaries—a clear indication of its success.
L’aube serves as a showcase, experimenting with and refining features that will later be available to other food hubs across Quebec. The tools developed through this collaboration will be accessible to the entire Arrivage community, thanks to the funding received for this purpose.
"From a social point of view, it makes sense to invest in collective technologies. It's a win-win for everyone," says Louis Lafortune, L’aube's former Executive Director.
The story relating the collaboration between L’aube and Arrivage fully demonstrates the benefits and potential of a partnership thoughtfully crafted by and for its participants. It’s an inspiring example of how tools that deeply understand human needs can promote the future of local supply chains in Quebec, making the purchase of local and organic produce more accessible.
Acknowledgements
L’aube is a project initiated and supported by Collectif Récolte with funding from Montréal en commun. Montréal en commun is a project led by the City of Montreal as part of the Smart Cities Challenge, made possible through the financial support of the Government of Canada.
L’aube's team would like to thank its financial partners, including the Quebec Council for Cooperation and Mutuality (CQCM), the Government of Canada, PME MTL, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAPAQ).
A special thank you to Arrivage for their exceptional help and support.
Finally, L’aube would not exist without its clients and producers, including Les jardins Carya, Santropol Roulant, Cultiver l’Espoir, Ferme aux pleines saveurs, Ferme aux colibris, Ferme Les Siffleux, Ferme Bio Saveurs, and the orchard La tête dans les pommes. We thank you wholeheartedly. Your commitment is essential to making this structure a hub for sustainable and responsible local food sourcing.
By Catherine Dallaire
Partners
L’aube, the food hub, is a project of the Local and Integrated Food System (SALIM), a multi-partner program initiated and supported by Collectif Récolte, as part of Montréal en commun and the Smart Cities Challenge. Montréal en commun is a project led by the City of Montreal as part of the Smart Cities Challenge, made possible through the financial support of the Government of Canada.
