N.S. school lunch program bolstered by new investment in apple business
Posted Apr 18, 2026 06:10:02 AM.
Last Updated Apr 20, 2026 11:04:12 AM.
A Nova Scotia apple grower will soon be able to distribute more of its produce locally, thanks to new equipment partially funded by the provincial government.
On Thursday, Agriculture Minister Greg Morrow made the announcement during a visit to The Station Food Hub Company in Newport Station, where he met with local apple growers, community partners and students from a nearby elementary school.
During the visit, Morrow announced that the company has received $25,000 from his department’s Institutional Supplier Investment Program and $72,045 from the Institutional Development Expansion and Advancement (IDEA) program to purchase apple-slicing and packaging equipment.
According to the province, the investment will increase the volume of apples processed from 30 cases per day to as many as 300.
The province says that increased output will provide up to 180 servings per case of apples, many of which are expected to be distributed to institutional markets in Nova Scotia, like schools, hospitals and care facilities.
Among them is the Nova Scotia School Lunch Program, an $80 million initiative by the province that served more than 4.7 million lunches to public school students daily in 2024-25.
“The apple line and local apple slices have become our third anchor product,” Rebecca Tran, founder of The Station Food Hub Company, said in a press release. “Alongside frozen vegetables and preserves, we can now offer a fresh product that expands opportunities for local growers and brings more Nova Scotia products into public institutions.”
With files from Blake Priddle, CityNews Halifax.
