Plant A Row
By Cindy Naas
Plant A Row For The Hungry is a program developed by the Garden Writers Association, created to encourage garden writers to use their position in their communities to encourage readers to donate produce from their gardens to food banks and homeless shelters.
Currently, local farmers are donating produce to an agency which I work for, and we can then offer our clients the opportunity to receive fresh locally grown produce. Here are some statistics on hunger in the U.S., from the GWA website.
“According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, one in ten households in the United States experiences hunger or the risk of hunger. Many frequently skip meals or eat too little, sometimes going without food for an entire day. Approximately 25 million people, including 9.9 million children, have substandard diets or must resort to seeking emergency food because they cannot always afford the food they need. In the past year, the demand for hunger assistance has increased by 40%, and research shows that hundreds of hungry children and adults are turned away from food banks each year because of lack of resources.”
This is a project which even city gardeners can become involved with. Do you have a planter of tomatoes? You might consider donating a few a week to a local food bank. Do you have a small veggie garden in your backyard? Consider planting a row or two of beans, corn or squash to take in to help feed a hungry family. Remember, no donation is too small or too insignificant when we are talking about a hungry child.
Here is a link to help you locate a program in your area.
July 20th, 2008 at 11:27 am
What a great idea! I currently have a ton of veggies weekly that I am finding homes for, I would rather give them to someone who needs them instead of a neighbor who can go out and buy it. Thanks for the post!