Skip to Content.
Sympa Menu

market-farming - RE: [Market-farming] Donating to the ederly

market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org

Subject: Market Farming

List archive

Chronological Thread  
  • From: Allan Balliett <igg AT igg.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: RE: [Market-farming] Donating to the ederly
  • Date: Sun, 2 Jan 2005 21:30:35 -0500

As a CSA that was originally formed to make nutritionally dense produce available to young mothers and other at risk groups, we have a lot of experience donating surplus produce to neighborhood agencies.

Without going into a lot of detail, I have to agree: volunteers at our area food banks tend to make off with the best produce (some bragging to us about how many bushels of our tomatoes they had taken home). While interest in fresh food has definitely improved in the past 10 years, we still find food bank management dragging its feet about fresh produce and we never feel a hand coming out to us from the food banks. Soup kitchens are consistently the most appreciative and flexible.

It behooves one who wants to donate food to the elderly to realize that perhaps they should contribute COOKING to the elderly, as well. We find that the elderly appreciate a good cooked meal more than they do a bag of produce. As they told us at meals-on-wheels 'Many elders no longer have cooking equipment.' At one point we were making soup and salad with a local church on Saturdays. It's was great to see how many 'free loaders' would get in the line with the 'official' elderly. That's ok, we were really 'feeding the hungry.'

Both state officials from WIC and managers of the local food banks have told us 'Our interest is in hunger, not nutrition.' I can see their point...sort of. With their meager annual allotments, though, it is hard to believe that they are interested in 'curing' either.

I have remained very disappointed at how difficult it is to engage local churches or civic groups in being the go-betweens for us. Matching farm hours to food bank hours can be very difficult. How nice it w.b. if church groups would carry at least part of this load. How great it is when a citizen realizes the value of what we have to share and will do some of the hauling.. and harvesting.

This year we are developing a PLANT A ROW FOR THE HUNGRY PROGRAM in this county. http://www.gardenwriters.org/par/ It's a chance to pull farms and gardeners together to support local hunger initiatives.

Inspite of what you may infer from my comments above, I remain excited!

-Allan Balliett
Fresh and Local CSA
Shepherdstown, WV




Archive powered by MHonArc 2.6.24.

Top of Page