This last year, Move For Hunger has committed greatly to our initiative of rescuing fresh food in order to limit food waste while fighting hunger. There were a multitude of fresh rescues picked up and transported by Move For Hunger this summer, and we want to highlight some of our favorites while highlighting our amazing partnership with our country's largest gleaning organization, the Society of St Andrew.
If you aren’t aware of what gleaning is, gleaning is the act of harvesting extra crops from farms and gardens to give to our neighbors facing hunger. Gleaning also helps farmers reduce food waste as 21% of food waste comes from farms.
In March, Dunmar Moving Systems - Norfolk, an Allied Van Line, assisted with moving over 5,600 lbs of fresh produce, transporting nearly 4,700 meals to Azalea Garden Church of God.
Move For Hunger got a request on July 14th for a last minute food recovery transport from Aurora, North Carolina for the next day on the 15th to find a home for 40,000 lbs of onions that were at risk of being wasted! Move For Hunger’s Fresh Food Program Manager, Jackie Godlewski, searched for a food bank to accept the large donation and an available transporting agency to do the last minute transport! The onions found a home at the Out of The Garden Project in Greensboro North Carolina and were transported 3 and a half hours by Ryder Fleet Management!
Less than a week later, Corey Farms reached out with a request to transport over 40,000 lbs of potatoes again! Pickup was scheduled for June 27th to be transported two hours to Tarboro, North Carolina! Ryder Freight was able to assist and help provide the refrigerated tractor trailer and bring the potatoes over state lines again to feed hungry families in North Carolina.
At the beginning of August, Move For Hunger transported over 27,900 pounds of Butternut Squash in North Carolina for distribution. The squash were picked up from the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina by Penske Truck Rental and brought to the Iglesia Presbiteriana Emanuel Church parking lot for distribution to 9 local hunger relief and social service agencies and for the general community to pick up and use.
Additionally, at the end of September, Stewart Moving and Storage - Portsmouth assisted with the transportation of over 10,600 lbs - over 8,800 meals! - of food from the Military Produce Group to Azalea Garden Church of God.
We are so thankful for our partnership with Society of St Andrew and we recommend you check out their website and all the good they do!! Special thanks to Ryder Fleet Management, Penske Truck Rental, TQL and of course Corey Farms and the other farms for thinking of us to help them with transporting their food and feeding the community!
