The New England Produce Council Leadership Class recently visited Stonefield Farm to volunteer with Boston Area Gleaners as part of its community service project.

The group was welcomed by Anna Strickhausen, operations coordinator, who led the volunteers through a morning of weeding leek beds while providing insight into the important work involved in growing and harvesting fresh produce. The hands-on experience gave participants a deeper appreciation for the dedication required to bring fresh food from the farm to communities throughout the region.

"We would not be able to do this important work without the support of our volunteers,” said Alyssa Ciolfi, senior development manager at Boston Area Gleaners. “We are so thankful to the NEPC Leadership Class for spending their time and energy with us."

Following the volunteer project, the Leadership Class toured Boston Area Gleaners' newly constructed cold storage warehouse with Dylan Frazier, director of operations and strategy, and Usha Thakrar, executive director. The new facility, made possible in part through a grant from the commonwealth of Massachusetts, will enable the organization to store three times more fresh produce on site, significantly expanding its capacity to recover and distribute nutritious food.

Boston Area Gleaners serves as a central hub for recovering, storing, processing and distributing surplus farm produce to regional food banks, pantries and other hunger-relief organizations throughout Massachusetts.

"As members of the produce industry, volunteering on the farm is always a meaningful experience that reconnects us with the roots of our business," said Laura Sullivan, executive director of the New England Produce Council. "We are grateful to Boston Area Gleaners for providing us with the opportunity to give back while supporting their mission of reducing food waste and increasing access to fresh, healthy produce. It was inspiring to see firsthand the incredible impact they have on fighting food insecurity throughout our region."

NEPC thanked the entire Boston Area Gleaners team for their hospitality and said it looks forward to welcoming the Boston Food Hub to the 26th annual NEPC Produce, Floral & Food Service Expo this August.

Top photo: Gabby Palmisano of Barnwood Valley Farm, Jacquelyn Keenan of JOH, Laura Sullivan of NEPC, Ryan Vigneault of Shaw’s and Trevor Bumpus of JOH.