Is It a Converted Bus, or a Fruit Stand? The Answer is Both.

Source: Laura Berman/The Globe and Mail

Source: Laura Berman/The Globe and Mail

A converted bus doesn’t always have to be turned into a mobile home, nor does it have to be made from an old school bus. I’ve shown many of those “skoolies” on our blog, but today I wanted to highlight a small coach bus that has been turned into a traveling fresh produce stand.

The produce stand is the product of FoodShare Toronto, who noticed there were many areas of their city where affordable meals and food sources are a rarity for under-privileged individuals. Sure, if you have the money to spend on fine-dining food may seem abundant. But, in these areas it can be much harder to stretch a limited budget to feed a family.

FoodShare Toronto wanted to ensure these families had access to health food at affordable prices, especially as they noted most affordable produce was less-than prime.

“By the time produce is on special there, the quality is so poor,” explains Afua Asantewaa of FoodShare Toronto. “If it’s not a discount grocery store like FreshCo or No Frills, they’re generally not accessible to the residents in the neighborhoods we serve.”

To realize their solution, the group went in search of a TTC bus and a plan to redesign it into the new Mobile Good Food Market. The final result is literally a mobile fruit and vegetable stand. When parked, the converted bus is barely noticeable underneath the shelves of greenery and even exotic fruits and vegetables generally unavailable for cheap. Even more, the shelves can be rearranged to allow for shopping inside the bus on days with poor weather.