PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) — In light of recent reductions in federal food assistance, an initiative spurred by the community is encouraging homeowners with gardens and fruit trees to contribute their surplus produce to local organizations aimed at alleviating hunger, thereby assisting families who struggle with food insecurity.
Elevate (Lift Urban Portland) assists over 15,000 individuals each year via its food bank, grocery stores, and delivered meal kits. However, this spring, the group reports that fresh fruits and vegetables aren’t being received at their warehouse in the usual amounts.
“Previously, we used to get around 10,000 pounds of food per delivery, but now this amount has been reduced by half,” stated Stephanie Barr, who serves as the executive director of Lift UP.
In March, the U.S. Department of Agriculture imposed a halt on Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) financing, a fund that food banks utilize for buying fruits and vegetables directly from nearby agricultural lands.
Approximately 18% of the food distributed via the Oregon Food Bank network of food banks and assistance locations comes from CCC initiatives.
With Lift UP seeing a 60% rise in both the quantity of food dispensed and the count of individuals assisted, the need for their services keeps expanding.
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“Now that the USDA has cut 20% of our food supply, we just can’t manage,” stated Barr.
This feeling of ambiguity led a group of nonprofits from the Portland area to launch the “Grow toDonate” initiative.
This appeal goes out to individuals who have a home garden, farming area, or fruit-bearing trees, encouraging them to contribute their excess harvest to those in need during the summertime.
“During spring, gardeners often make numerous planting choices, but as summer arrives, they might wonder, ‘How will I manage everything?’ In such situations, many groups can handle the distribution tasks,” explained Heather Keisler Fornes, who leads the Portland Fruit Tree Project.
Since kicking off earlier this week, Grow toDonate already boasts 10 participants.
Nonprofits such as the OHSU Student Pantry, Urban Gleaners, Community forPositive Aging, and Lift UP in Portland will receive benefits through these donations of produce.
And every tomato counts.
“We keep observing hunger rates surge, which means that those of us fortunate enough to own land that we can cultivate should consider it our duty to contribute by growing food for others,” stated Keisler Fornes.
To learn more about Grow toDonate,
click here
.
