The Gleaning InitiativeCatalyzing mutually beneficial relationships

Slow Money Maine, July 2015

New England Food Vision 2015

14 years HMP23 employees

2 counties1.4 million FY 14

Starting in 2010 UMCE gleaned 4,000 LBS from 1 Orchard with 20 volunteers

In 2013 a Community Development Block Grant through the Maine Office of Economic Community Development launched the GI.

The Gleaning Initiative is a collaborative project of Healthy Acadia and UMaine Cooperative Extension.

The Gleaning Trajectory

Volunteer-based Gleaning

Goal 1 - Increase access to locally grown produce using volunteer labor to collect surplus from farms and distribute to food pantries and meal sites

Surplus and Seconds Management

Goal 2 - Support family farm systems while supplying nutritious food to those in need

Goal 3 – Catalyze mutually beneficial relationships between farms, businesses, institutions, and food security organizations.

Supporting the local food economy

Gleaning a Success!• 60,000LBS • 30 Farms• 112 Volunteers

Photos by Brendan Bullock & Maine Farmland Trust

Four Season Farm - Harborside, ME

2014 Funding - Broad Reach Fund, Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, Quimby Family Foundation, USDA SARE

2014 Awards – NOECD/CD Sterling Achievement Award.

2015 Events - New England Food Vision, SFLI, MSCW, Maine Fare, SMM.

Food Waste Prevention Strategy

Not Preferred

EPA Food Waste Hierarchy

Preferred

CORE PILOTSmart Growth

$250,000A. Gleaning Initiative Core Activity Costs: $200,000/yr

– Continue to increase farmer and gardener relations– Build in self-sustaining value creation – Provide TA to launch programs throughout Maine

B. Subcontracting Business Consultants: $15,000- FarmStart

- CYON

C. Social Business Pilot Projects: $35,000 / 3-6mo.– Test tech-based solutions for local food economy– Navigate myriad of resources for social business– Subsidize slow paced economic development

Providing valuable early experience feedback for the LeanPath Zap product development and market strategy

Food Waste Tracking

Technology Drives Behavior

PILOT 2 - $10,000 Food Waste Prevention

Phase 1 – Coordination of trial sites 2015 (Sept-Oct)• LeanPath : 5 Food Waste Trackers / 10 food service • Healthy Acadia : 30 site visits - Launch & Best Practices

Phase 2 – Evaluation & Report (November)• HCPC : 5 person days of Executive Director (UMCE)• CYON : Organics Collection Opportunity Assessment

Phase 3 - Feasibility Study of Organics Waste Diversion

Jamien Richardson is wonderful at reflecting ideas back to farmers, in ways that lead to efficient projects

• Spoiler Alert is a B2B food-tech solution for wasted food

• Creates an online marketplace for discounted food sales, food donations, and waste recovery opportunities

• Offers payment processing, documentation• Open and closed network features: manage

existing relationships or develop new ones

Placing Surplus

Phase 1 - Spoiler Alert B2B food-tech solution trial • SA Product Development: From Urban to Rural• HA Onboard 45 seats (Farms, Distributors, HCFSN)• FarmStart provides Wholesale Market Consulting

PILOT 3 - $10,000Surplus Management

Phase 2 – Spoiler Alert Online Marketplace 2016• 6 month extension of Spoiler Alert in Downeast, ME• Evaluation and reporting economic opportunities

You provide the passion; we'll help you structure and prune

Building a lasting partnership• Gleaning• Mainers Feeding Mainers• Bulk CSA model for Farm-to-Institution• Working with Drug Court Volunteers• CYON consulting services under USDA SARE

STAR ROOT FARM A Community Farming Model

Phase 1 – Refrigerated Storage (Sept-Oct)• Star Root habilitates space for central storage• HA tests the space for Gleaning and Spoiler Alert• CYON provides Operational Plan for Aggregation

PILOT 3 - $5,000Aggregation & Distribution

@ Star Root Farm

Phase 2 – Assessing Food Hub Viability (May 2016)• HA Partners with Distributors, Farmers, Institutions• Star Root operates the Hub• CYON analyses economic opportunities

Snack Time @ The Mobile Kitchen

Serving Schools and Health Care to create a demand from within institutions for healthy snacks.

Team:Kristyn E LePlanteAnna Wind The Gleaning Initiative UMCE

Phase 1 – Equip The Mobile Kitchen (Sept-Nov)• GSA supports 9am Healthy Snack Time Plan• HA supports partner coordination and sourcing• LePlante – The Mobile Kitchen Operational Plan

PILOT 5 - $10,000Packaged Healthy Snacks

@ The Mobile Kitchen

Phase 2 – Light Processing for Institutions (May 2016)• HA Partners with UMCE to provide gleaned product• The Mobile Kitchen partners with GSA and MCMH• CYON - Business Planning Consulting

You had me at Zucchini!

Hannah Semlerhannah@healthyacadia.org

(c) 207-8128265(o) 207-6677171

fb: The Gleaning Initiative@gleaning_initiative

www.healthyacadia.org/initiativesA Girl’s Got to Glean (blog)