Gleaning - one way to prevent food waste

Gleaning is the name given to the idea of bringing in volunteers to harvest crops that a farmer is unable to and donating that food to soup kitchens and food pantries.

In my time at GardenShare, I've had a few conversations with people about how we should be gleaning from local farms.  And while I don't necessarily disagree, I also know from my work at a food bank for many years, that it's not quite as simple as it sounds.

These activities always tend to be last minute and there are lots of questions to answer.  Who will recruit the volunteers?  Who will supervise them to make sure they pick in the right fields and don't do any damage?  Where will boxes or other packaging come from?  Are the local programs even open to accept the donation and who will deliver it?

This week, I've had an example of just how hard this is.

A local grower estimated that he has 150 quarts of blueberries that he could donate, but he needs volunteers to pick them.  In this case, he had solved one of the logistical problems by making arrangements to freeze the blueberries in the new commercial kitchen at Cooperative Extension.  We thought if we could ask volunteers to bring a box of quart freezer bags with them, we could make this work.

Of course, time is of the essence.  Every day that goes by means a loss of quantity and quality of the berries.

I have reached out to several community groups and so far no takers.  I suspect, at this point, that a large amount of these berries will go to waste.  And I hate that.

Are there any volunteers out there who would like to work on developing a gleaning program?  If so, I'd love to talk to you.

Gloria

Food waste and gleaning

After Monday evening's showing of "Just Eat It," there was some conversation about why we are not doing more gleaning in St. Lawrence County.  The term gleaning refers to harvesting the surplus that might be left in the fields after a farmer has completed his harvest.  This is usually done by volunteers and the produce is given to local food pantries or community meal programs.  (See an article about a successful gleaning program in the capital region here.)

Asked why GardenShare doesn't set up an online platform to allow farmers to list crops that could be harvested and volunteers to sign up to do it, I had to agree that part sounded easy and simple.

But, while setting up that online platform would be easy, establishing a full-scale gleaning program would not.  Here are just some of the challenges to address:

• Who will provide the boxes or other containers to put the produce in?
• Who will transport the produce to the food pantry or community meal program?
• Will the pantry or meal program even be open when the volunteers are working?  Will they have refrigerator space to store the produce?
• Who will supervise the volunteers at the farm and make sure they only pick in the right areas, park in the right areas, etc.?
• What happens when a volunteer does something s/he was not supposed to at a farm and the farmer is unhappy?

I'm sure more challenges or questions would come up.  And I also know that successful gleaning programs can be operated.  Capital Roots is doing it in the Albany area.  And Foodshare, where I was the CEO for thirty years, is doing it in the Hartford, Connecticut area.

At Foodshare, we had funds for supplies, refrigerated trucks to move the food around, and staff and experienced volunteers to supervise the whole process.  GardenShare currently has none of these things!

However, if there are volunteers and farmers who would like to explore setting up a farm gleaning program in St. Lawrence County, I would surely be happy to help you do that!  Get in toucch!

Gloria

GLEANING MAKES A COMEBACK

Gleaning is a concept that goes back to antiquity and is still protected by law in Europe, but is not extensively practiced in the U.S. But in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, gathering excess, unused produce and fruit in farm fields and orchards for distribution to the area's many food pantries and meal programs is an idea whose time has come. Franklin County's Gleaning Project, which began last year collects excess, unsalable but still perfectly good food from farmers, orchardists, and home gardeners then redistributes it to the community's neediest citizens. Last year, the project rescued over 25,000 pounds of fresh, local produce from area farms and gardens that would have otherwise have gone to waste. Instead  that food went to 27 different community partners for distribution to the needy.

Source: Public Opinion Online, 8/19/15, Gleaning

Growing Community Award presented to the Martin family

GardenShare presented the 2014 Growing Community Award to the Daniel and Mendy Martin family on Saturday, January 17. Daniel and Mendy own Martin's Needham Road Market on US Highway 11B outside of Potsdam.

GardenShare Executive Director Gloria McAdam (left) and President of the
Board of Directors, Carol Pynchon (right) present the award to the Martin's.

“They have been an influential part of the local food movement since 1998 when they started a U-pick strawberry operation at Southville Corners,” GardenShare Board of Directors President Carol Pynchon said.

A crowd fills the TAUNY center for
the award ceremony

The farm stand has grown exponentially since then; with other small farmers they produced and sold between 60 and 70 tons of food in 2012.  The Needham Road Market offers high quality vegetables at the stand and through an innovative on-line market. They are one of the first farm stands to accept payment through SNAP benefits and they have a small-scale wholesale operation that provides produce to local retail outlets.

“The Martin family consistently supports organizations that work toward food security in the North Country by donating produce to community meals, food pantries, and neighborhood centers, and they often welcome gleaners in their fields,” Pynchon said.

The GardenShare board and staff  thank  the local farms and retail organizations who made this event possible: Dan and Meghan Kent of Kent Family Growers, Dave and Kathy Rice from Sweet Core Farm, and Mike Corse of Deep Root Farm donated the vegetables and dried beans for the chili;ature's Storehouse  contributed the cornbread ingredients; and the Potsdam food Co-op provided the tomatoes, spices and dairy products.  Cindy Murdie from  Cindy’s  Cake Shop donated the beautiful cake.  We are so fortunate to live in a community that supports and honors  our work.

Thank you to the Methodist Church for allowing us to use their certified kitchen to produce the chili and corn bread.  Thank you to Jill Breit and the TAUNY Center staff for the use of their warm and welcoming space.  It was the ideal venue for this celebration of community spirit and connections.

The Martin Family join the following past recipients of this award:

• Jenny and Brian Walker - 2013
• Carlton Doane, Free Will Meals - 2012
• Katherine Lang - 2011
• U Share, Unitarian Universalist Church - 2010
• Julie Holbrook, Keene Central School - 2009
• Cindy Harnas, South Jefferson Central School - 2009
• North Country Public Radio - 2008
• Food Bank of Central New York - 2007
• Betsey Hodge - 2006
• North Country Grown Cooperative - 2006
• Seedcorn - 2005
• Canton Farmers Market - 2004
• PACES - 2003

Learn more about the Martin's and the award here