An estimated 14.3 million pounds of vegetables and berries grown in Vermont are not eaten or sold by a farm. This staggering number was reduced by 38,722 pounds in 2018, thanks to the gleaning efforts organized by Community Harvest of Central Vermont based in Berlin. All of this, plus an additional 11,954 pounds from Willing Hands in the Upper Valley, was donated to over 9,000 Central Vermonters in need of food.

“The work we do is to recover some of that food,” says Allison Levin, executive director of Community Harvest of Central Vermont. “We are trying to recover the million pounds in Washington County. Our goal is to get healthy food to people.

Become a Volunteer: 

Get outside and meet your neighbors! Learn how to reduce wasted food and learn how local food is grown. Clean and sort and get the produce ready for delivery. Learn how to Glean and work with us to harvest from local farm fields. Pick up the produce  after the farmers markets that can’t be sold. Deliver the produce to food shelves, meals on Wheels, and other sites.

There is Data Entry work to be done to keep track of all the local produce and where it is going. Community Harvest also has Outreach and Education programs. Give talks about the work in the different communities in Vermont. Hang posters of events happening and much more.