NEWS RELEASE
COMMONWELL MUTUAL INSURANCE GROUP
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Things are not optimal in Ontario.
With COVID quarantines, stay-at-home orders and lockdowns growing daily, Ontarians are left at loose ends looking for a project to distract from raging cabin fever. The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group is stepping in with a fresh and relentlessly positive gardening giveaway.
Dubbed ‘SEEDit,’ the program will provide 2,000 families with $50 SEEDit certificates to purchase fruit and vegetable plants and seeds from 19 garden centres across the province.
Paying it forward with produce:
The Commonwell’s SEEDit program has an audacious goal of producing 2000 pounds of produce through participating Ontario families and individuals. They ask participants to pay forward a portion of their produce bounty to support food banks, food security programs or neighbours at the local level.
“We think a great way to support our communities in these difficult times than by providing both the joy of gardening for Ontarians and the ability to share fresh, healthy produce to support local food security programs,” said Tim Shauf, President and CEO of The Commonwell Mutual Insurance Group. “The Commonwell has financially supported individual community food programs in the past, but we believe the SEEDit program will have an ongoing impact, far past this growing season and on a much larger scale. We’re thrilled that Ontarians will learn about backyard agriculture while experiencing the outdoors and actively contributing to food security. We believe that food security is truly achieved in our communities when everyone chips in and gets involved.”
Starting April 29, Ontarians can register to get their $50 SEED-it certificates from the Commonwell’s website. Ontarians can then select any of the garden centres across Eastern and Central Ontario listed below to purchase seeds, plants and other gardening supplies.
Locally, the participants include:
- Scott's Garden Centre, 254 Coldwater Rd.
- Orillia Home Hardware, 5 King St.
- Ego's Garden Centre, 596 Horseshoe Valley Rd. E., Coldwater
As part of the SEED-it initiative, the Commonwell encourages Ontarians to post pictures of their progress and bounty of produce at #CommonwellSEEDit and join the facebook SEEDitCommunity. The Commonwell is inviting ALL budding green thumbs to get involved in the facebook community, even if they aren’t redeeming a voucher through the program. The company is aiming to create a ripple effect and encourages the sharing of gardening tips and tricks with others.
“We know that Ontarians have decades of proven and practical backyard agricultural advice,” added Shauf. “We want everyone to spill their best secrets so that SEEDit can hit our 2000 pounds of produce goal and beyond.”
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