Farm to Food Pantry Volunteers Needed
The Farm to Food Pantry Program reclaims food donated from local farms and distributes it to food pantries and soup kitchens across Ulster County with the goal of increasing access to local food in food deserts and areas of poverty. The program is a partnership between the Rondout Valley Growers Association, Family of Woodstock, UlsterCorps, and many other local agencies and businesses.
Contact us to learn about how you can become a part of this wonderful volunteer driven initiative! Register by emailing volunteers@familyofwoodstockinc.org or calling Beth at (845) 331-7080×157
Farm Donors
Local farmers in the Rondout Valley and Hudson Valley are tremendously supportive of the program by making weekly donations of foods they are not able to sell through their retail or wholesale markets.
Gleaning
The Farm to Food Pantry Program partnered with UlsterCorps volunteers to “Glean” or harvest produce left in farm fields at the end of the growing season. Crops gleaned included apples, broccoli, greens and more.
Processing
In order to extend the growing season and to make local products available throughout the year, RVGA processed local items such as tomatoes into tomato sauce, apples into apple sauce, and froze broccoli, corn, peppers, blueberries, and more. This was made possible by partnering with Family, Community Action, Rondout Valley Central School District and Ulster ARC to utilize their kitchen and freezer spaces.
Distribution
A total of 63,400 pounds of fresh, processed and frozen local produce was distributed to 28 pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, public schools and other nutrition support organizations in Ulster County during 2015. Additional frozen items continued to be distributed throughout the winter months. Since inception in 2009, the RVGA Farm to Food Pantry program joined by Family of Woodstock and UlsterCorps volunteers has collected and distributed over 290,000 pounds of locally grown produce to those in need in our community.
How you can help:
- Harvest fresh produce donated by local farms (gleaning)
- Pick up and distribute produce to our community’s food pantries, shelters and feeding programs
- Help with processing produce so that it can be frozen and distributed throughout the winter
- Help out long-term at your local food pantry
- Help prepare & deliver meals to the homebound
- Donate produce from your farm or garden directly to your local food pantry, or call us for help with distribution
- Purchase a share from a local CSA and donate it to your local food pantry
Thank You!
Thank you to all of our partner organizations, farmers, and community volunteers who make this program possible. Together we are strengthening our local food system and fight hunger by increasing access to healthy local foods in our community.
