Americorps member pledges to reinstate old produce programs
Volunteers harvest fresh produce at a Plant-a-row at a Spokane farm.
MOSES LAKE - The Moses Lake Food Bank is looking to launch programs geared toward offering more fresh produce for the community.
The food bank received about 180,000 pounds of fresh produce last year, but with a couple hundred people visiting the food each day, more is needed.
"My goal is to at least double that number in the 2013 growing season," said Jeni Roberts, an Americorps VISTA member who has been placed with the Moses Lake Food Bank through the Rotary First Harvest.
Roberts plans to reintroduce Giving Gardens and start a Plant-A-Row program with local farmers. The Rotary program works to find innovative ways to decrease produce waste and increase the availability of fresh produce for food banks.
"I am working with Habitat for Humanity to get their Giving Garden up and running again," Roberts said. "They've done it a few times, but didn't have much success last year."
Roberts previously worked with the Iowa Food Co-op and community supported agriculture farms. She said many churches in Iowa have Giving Gardens and she plans to speak with local churches around Moses Lake to start their own. Roberts said she has already received seeds to help start the program.
"These seeds will be distributed to community gardeners, and food bank clients to help ensure hunger in the area is reduced by providing quality, fresh produce to food banks in lieu of shelf stable, processed foods that have traditionally filled food banks nationwide," Roberts said.
The Moses Lake Food Bank has also never adopted a Plant-A-Row program, but Roberts wants to change this.
"It's a nationwide program that just gets gardeners or farmers to donate a row of their garden or a chunk of land to harvest for food banks," Roberts said.
The nationwide program, launched in 1995 by the Garden Writers Association, provides training and support for food banks teaming up with local growers.
Roberts is also planning a gleaning program, where local volunteers gather unharvested produce from farmers, produce that is usually wasted.
The Moses Lake Food Bank is operated by the Community Services of Moses Lake and provides services to 12 food banks in Grant, Adams and Lincoln counties.