Every year, an astonishing 40% of all food in the U.S. ends up in landfills or is left to rot in fields. With more than 40 million Americans, including 1 in 6 children, facing hunger daily, what can we do to reduce food waste in a meaningful way?
Gleaning, the ancient practice of gathering leftover crops after a harvest and sharing them with people in need, can be part of the solution. Move For Hunger encourages all of its members to use their resources to assist with gleaning opportunities in their area. And, for the past several years, our partners at Gentle Giant Moving Company of Philadelphia have collaborated with A.T. Buzby Farm and Philabundance to participate in a corn gleaning towards the end of the summer. This year, Gentle Giant helped rescue more than 2,500 lbs. of fresh corn and delivered it to the Touch New Jersey food pantry!
The ability to provide fresh fruit and vegetables to food insecure residents is becoming a priority for food banks and pantries nationwide. Farm to food bank gleaning partnerships, like this one, provide food banks with the opportunity to receive fresh produce that would otherwise be discarded or destroyed.
On Thursday, September 12, Gentle Giant Moving and a team of volunteers were on hand to help pick and pack the produce.Gentle Giant then delivered the fresh corn to Touch New Jersey, which operates a food pantry where low-income, elderly, and disabled residents are able to “shop” for fresh fruit, vegetables, meats, dairy, bread, and other staples.
Through this gleaning partnership and the generosity of Gentle Giant, thousands of pounds of corn was made available to the over 60,000 food insecure residents of Camden County. Many thanks to Gentle Giant, A.T. Buzby Farm, and Philabundance for working together to reduce food waste and fight hunger!
Are you in the relocation industry? You can join the Move For Hunger network today. Doing good is good for business! There are a number of ways to fight hunger in your community. Get started today!
