The Farm to Food Bank Initiative will work with more farms after a successful 2021 pilot project with Rendleman Orchards, according to Stephen “Steve” Ericson, executive director of Feeding Illinois. During the recent Live Local Conference, Ericson; Janie Maxwell, executive director of the Illinois Farmers Market Association (ILFMA); and Zach Samaras, technical assistance engineer with the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, …
A young Woodford County farm family is feeling grateful after an influx of volunteers helped them harvest a two-acre food plot, with the fresh produce destined for area food banks. Alison “Ali” and Nathan Gibbs, of rural Benson, operate Nathan’s family’s commercial row crop farm that for 70 years produced nothing but corn, soybeans and wheat for delivery to local …
Food banks in Illinois got a special treat last year: more than 600,000 pounds of peaches, nectarines and apples. Marred by a dimple here or there, the fruit was bounty that previously might have been left to rot, deemed unsuitable for grocery stores. Instead, a three-year pilot program distributed tons of such fresh fruit to food pantries, shelters, senior centers …
David Nayak bought a Grundy County farm in October with a goal to impact lives and fight hunger. On July 28, the Chicago physician delivered fresh sweet corn to two food banks. “I think God is calling us to feed our state,” Nayak told FarmWeek the day after helping with his first harvest at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. Nayak …
Download Brochure February, 2022 Feeding Illinois partnered with Rendleman Orchards during the 2021 growing season to ensure no fruit went to waste! Through the USDA’s Farm to Food Bank grant, Feeding Illinois was able to pay Rendleman Orchards its picking and pack-out costs (PPO) which represent the farm’s costs to harvest and package the product and enabled the donation of …
