Peaches Donation
When: Weekend of September 17th
Where: Caldwell Orchard (Idaho) to Utah Food Bank
What: Peaches
Over the weekend, we moved tons of these beautiful peaches from Caldwell Orchard in Idaho all the way to the Utah Food Bank. They were gratefully received, with the staff at UT Food Bank saying they “look phenomenal” and referring to them as a bunch of “fine peaches.” They’ll all go towards feeding people and families in the Salt Lake City area!
Oranges Donation
When: September 26th
Where: Monterey County Food Bank
What: Oranges
Recently, we delivered several loads of oranges to Monterey County Food Bank in Southern California. Here’s the message from Toun Ray, the Food Sourcing Manager at Monterey County Food Bank:
“The oranges were wonderful! The recipients are ecstatic to receive such a wonderful product. Please see attached photos taken at our site today.
Tell the donor that we appreciate the wonderful donation and look forward to future donations.”
Mike Meyer, our Head of Farmer Advocacy, called this delivery a particularly “wonderful citrus donation.” Love it!
Celery Donation
When: September 25
Where: Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services
What: Celery
At the beginning of September, we sent a truckload of celery to the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services located in Sacramento, CA. This was the first time we’d worked with this facility, and we were glad to be able to send them this amazing celery- a highly in-demand item at food banks given its difficult growing and shipping conditions. Here’s what our new friends in Sacramento had to say about the delivery:
“Earlier this month, we started working with a new donor: The Farmlink Project. The Farmlink Project connects farmers to food banks, delivering farm fresh produce that would otherwise be wasted to feed families experiencing hunger. Our first delivery from them was a truckload of celery, a nutritious item that we don't see very often. We're incredibly excited about this new partnership and look forward to continuing to work together to provide fresh produce to our neighbors in need while reducing food waste!”
Cheers to that! We’ll do our best to keep the celery coming!
Melons Donation
When: Early January (first week of 2024)
Where: Houston Food Bank
What: Melons
During the first week of 2024, we delivered several loads of melons to Houston Food Bank in Houston, Texas. Serving over 800,000 recipients per year, Houston Food Bank is the largest food bank in the entire United States!
The staff at Houston Food Bank said the melons looked “great, nice and firm” and would immediately go out to people and families in the area. We’re very grateful to be able to bring deliveries to this amazing community hub in Houston, and we’re so excited to continue to grow this relationship!
Tomatoes Donation
When: November 19, 2023 (Sunday)
Where: Eagles Helping Hands in Redford, MI
What: Tomatoes
Hunger never sleeps!
On Saturday, November 18, Mastronardi Canada donated a huge truckload of tomatoes to Farmlink. Our very own Mauricio Reyes, the Deal Flow Manager at Farmlink, got them secured right away and coordinated their delivery to Eagle Helping Hands, a nonprofit organization based in Redford, Michigan that rescues and distributes surplus food.
This delivery demonstrated just how quickly we can receive and deliver huge quantities of surplus produce, even on a weekend! Or as Mike Meyer, our Head of Farmer Advocacy, described it “two days start to finish, no middlemen.”
These changes are great. But how’s it all going to be funded?
During the comment process, Farmlink, as well as other food rescue organizations and coalitions, raised critical questions about how the strategy would be funded and, as a result, which measures are feasible. In particular, we hoped for more clarity beyond the draft’s statement that the USDA would use American Rescue Plan Act and Inflation Reduction Act funds and the EPA would use Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funds. Of the 86 programs or initiatives reviewed in the final strategy, only 15 are completely new programs announced in the strategy.
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The other 71 are existing programs or initiatives that either already have a food loss and waste focus or that the national strategy has repackaged as food loss and waste solutions. While we had hopes of new, innovative programs being included in the strategy, the good news with these 71 programs is that most, if not all, are already funded, meaning that they are not reliant on an increasingly turbulent Congress for implementation. Of the 15 new programs, which included the EPA’s new consumer education campaign and several new cooperative agreements with land-grant universities, only 2 had specific funding mechanisms. It has become increasingly clear that food rescue organizations and other stakeholders in the food and agriculture space should not consider this strategy as a new rollout of FLW solutions, programs, and funding but rather as an evaluation of the current resources and solutions and how each can be most effectively utilized to achieve the strategy’s goals. In particular, the framing of many of USDA’s programs as FLW solutions offers opportunities to utilize existing funding, data, and infrastructure to solve one of the United States’s most pressing problems.
Whats next?
Now that we have the strategy, it’s time to truly take advantage of the opportunities it presents. In the immediate future at Farmlink, we’re excited to continue optimizing Section 32 as a critical on-farm food loss solution as we anticipate significant surplus recoveries in the fall. As we move forward, we continue to advocate for dignity with food distribution, emphasizing cultural appropriateness and quality in every pound of food we rescue. As outlined in our comments, food rescue organizations are critical stakeholders and thought partners for the agencies. Our inclusion in the strategy as such is an opportunity we are taking full advantage of to help guide federal action to support farmers, feed communities, and heal the planet.
< BackPeaches Donation
When: Weekend of September 17th
Where: Caldwell Orchard (Idaho) to Utah Food Bank
What: Peaches
Over the weekend, we moved tons of these beautiful peaches from Caldwell Orchard in Idaho all the way to the Utah Food Bank. They were gratefully received, with the staff at UT Food Bank saying they “look phenomenal” and referring to them as a bunch of “fine peaches.” They’ll all go towards feeding people and families in the Salt Lake City area!
Oranges Donation
When: September 26th
Where: Monterey County Food Bank
What: Oranges
Recently, we delivered several loads of oranges to Monterey County Food Bank in Southern California. Here’s the message from Toun Ray, the Food Sourcing Manager at Monterey County Food Bank:
“The oranges were wonderful! The recipients are ecstatic to receive such a wonderful product. Please see attached photos taken at our site today.
Tell the donor that we appreciate the wonderful donation and look forward to future donations.”
Mike Meyer, our Head of Farmer Advocacy, called this delivery a particularly “wonderful citrus donation.” Love it!
Celery Donation
When: September 25
Where: Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services
What: Celery
At the beginning of September, we sent a truckload of celery to the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services located in Sacramento, CA. This was the first time we’d worked with this facility, and we were glad to be able to send them this amazing celery- a highly in-demand item at food banks given its difficult growing and shipping conditions. Here’s what our new friends in Sacramento had to say about the delivery:
“Earlier this month, we started working with a new donor: The Farmlink Project. The Farmlink Project connects farmers to food banks, delivering farm fresh produce that would otherwise be wasted to feed families experiencing hunger. Our first delivery from them was a truckload of celery, a nutritious item that we don't see very often. We're incredibly excited about this new partnership and look forward to continuing to work together to provide fresh produce to our neighbors in need while reducing food waste!”
Cheers to that! We’ll do our best to keep the celery coming!
Melons Donation
When: Early January (first week of 2024)
Where: Houston Food Bank
What: Melons
During the first week of 2024, we delivered several loads of melons to Houston Food Bank in Houston, Texas. Serving over 800,000 recipients per year, Houston Food Bank is the largest food bank in the entire United States!
The staff at Houston Food Bank said the melons looked “great, nice and firm” and would immediately go out to people and families in the area. We’re very grateful to be able to bring deliveries to this amazing community hub in Houston, and we’re so excited to continue to grow this relationship!
Tomatoes Donation
When: November 19, 2023 (Sunday)
Where: Eagles Helping Hands in Redford, MI
What: Tomatoes
Hunger never sleeps!
On Saturday, November 18, Mastronardi Canada donated a huge truckload of tomatoes to Farmlink. Our very own Mauricio Reyes, the Deal Flow Manager at Farmlink, got them secured right away and coordinated their delivery to Eagle Helping Hands, a nonprofit organization based in Redford, Michigan that rescues and distributes surplus food.
This delivery demonstrated just how quickly we can receive and deliver huge quantities of surplus produce, even on a weekend! Or as Mike Meyer, our Head of Farmer Advocacy, described it “two days start to finish, no middlemen.”
Farmlink Deliveries
Peaches Donation
When: Weekend of September 17th
Where: Caldwell Orchard (Idaho) to Utah Food Bank
What: Peaches
Over the weekend, we moved tons of these beautiful peaches from Caldwell Orchard in Idaho all the way to the Utah Food Bank. They were gratefully received, with the staff at UT Food Bank saying they “look phenomenal” and referring to them as a bunch of “fine peaches.” They’ll all go towards feeding people and families in the Salt Lake City area!
Oranges Donation
When: September 26th
Where: Monterey County Food Bank
What: Oranges
Recently, we delivered several loads of oranges to Monterey County Food Bank in Southern California. Here’s the message from Toun Ray, the Food Sourcing Manager at Monterey County Food Bank:
“The oranges were wonderful! The recipients are ecstatic to receive such a wonderful product. Please see attached photos taken at our site today.
Tell the donor that we appreciate the wonderful donation and look forward to future donations.”
Mike Meyer, our Head of Farmer Advocacy, called this delivery a particularly “wonderful citrus donation.” Love it!
Celery Donation
When: September 25
Where: Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services
What: Celery
At the beginning of September, we sent a truckload of celery to the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services located in Sacramento, CA. This was the first time we’d worked with this facility, and we were glad to be able to send them this amazing celery- a highly in-demand item at food banks given its difficult growing and shipping conditions. Here’s what our new friends in Sacramento had to say about the delivery:
“Earlier this month, we started working with a new donor: The Farmlink Project. The Farmlink Project connects farmers to food banks, delivering farm fresh produce that would otherwise be wasted to feed families experiencing hunger. Our first delivery from them was a truckload of celery, a nutritious item that we don't see very often. We're incredibly excited about this new partnership and look forward to continuing to work together to provide fresh produce to our neighbors in need while reducing food waste!”
Cheers to that! We’ll do our best to keep the celery coming!
Melons Donation
When: Early January (first week of 2024)
Where: Houston Food Bank
What: Melons
During the first week of 2024, we delivered several loads of melons to Houston Food Bank in Houston, Texas. Serving over 800,000 recipients per year, Houston Food Bank is the largest food bank in the entire United States!
The staff at Houston Food Bank said the melons looked “great, nice and firm” and would immediately go out to people and families in the area. We’re very grateful to be able to bring deliveries to this amazing community hub in Houston, and we’re so excited to continue to grow this relationship!
Tomatoes Donation
When: November 19, 2023 (Sunday)
Where: Eagles Helping Hands in Redford, MI
What: Tomatoes
Hunger never sleeps!
On Saturday, November 18, Mastronardi Canada donated a huge truckload of tomatoes to Farmlink. Our very own Mauricio Reyes, the Deal Flow Manager at Farmlink, got them secured right away and coordinated their delivery to Eagle Helping Hands, a nonprofit organization based in Redford, Michigan that rescues and distributes surplus food.
This delivery demonstrated just how quickly we can receive and deliver huge quantities of surplus produce, even on a weekend! Or as Mike Meyer, our Head of Farmer Advocacy, described it “two days start to finish, no middlemen.”
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