Volunteer chefs and other community members help process more than 200 pounds of gleaned garden produce.
When 203 pounds of fresh produce arrive in a church kitchen, there is nothing to do but to be creative.
In a scene that could easily have been captured in the kitchens of a TV contest, local food experts and volunteers used donated produce to make meal kits and salsa to be distributed in the community.
The Community Food Security Network has been focused on food insecurity for several years. Since the summer of 2023, their strategy has been fine-tuned: Reduce food waste while also reducing the distance between local food producers and consumers.
Data shows that food waste is a significant issue in our community. As a result, the Community Food Security Network developed a gleaning strategy over the summer of 2024. Food gleaning is defined simply as the act of collecting excess fresh foods — in this case, from willing gardeners and local farms.
The goal of the pilot was to learn whether a group of volunteers — including interested gardeners, local chefs, and food preservation experts — could collaborate in a short period of time to rescue garden produce that might otherwise go to waste.
Wesley United Methodist Church offered the use of its commercial kitchen for food processing. A handful of volunteer chefs and food preservation experts did their part. And other volunteers picked up and delivered the gleaned vegetables from local gardens and farms.
Click on the arrows to see more photos of the gleaning event.
Total outcomes included 24-ounce bags of frozen product: 25 bags marinara, 19 bags vegetable bean soup, and 16 bags ratatouille base. In addition, canned mild salsa yielded 66 pint jars.
Volunteers reported the single long day of work was fun. They built new relationships and created a valuable food source for the community.
Participants represented a broad range of local organizations, including Thrivent, Wesley United Methodist Church, Avera Health, Sioux Falls Chefs, Minnehaha County Master Gardeners, South Dakota State University Extension, Groundworks Connect, Blue Sky Vegetable Company, Sioux Falls School District, Boys & Girls Clubs of the Sioux Empire, Health Connect of South Dakota, City of Sioux Falls, Volunteers of America-Dakotas, Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment, and Cash Cow Co-op.
Distribution of the final products was decided by the group, with the salsa going to a local food pantry and the marinara, vegetable bean soup, and ratatouille base being offered on the Eat Well Sioux Falls Mobile Market for free with the purchase of an inexpensive accompanying item (for example, the marinara was free with the purchase of a box of pasta).
Click on the arrows to see more photos of the final products.
Gleaning Project Evolves
The Food Security Action Team, buoyed by the success of the project, met over the winter months to discuss how to evolve the initiative. More partners, including Bread Break and St. Francis House, were brought in to broaden the scope of the project. The new plan, dubbed Food Rescue 605, involves finding new volunteers, gardeners, chefs, and commercial kitchens to participate, with the goal of expanding the production process to multiple neighborhoods.
Interested in Food Rescue?
Sioux Falls Thrive’s Community Food Security Network is working on a food rescue system that encompasses the entire food chain, from producers to restaurants to grocery stores to recipients — and we need your help! If you’d like to become involved, please fill out this form to identify how you’d like to contribute to this exciting new initiative! Submit your interest here:
2024 Efforts Began with Garden Week in May
Garden Week, a grassroots initiative to bring people together to create gardens in different neighborhoods across the city, took place May 20-24, 2024. With the help of volunteers, land partners, and community organizations, Garden Week’s aim was to turn neighborhoods into vibrant green spaces where people can come together to grow food and strengthen community bonds.
Approximately 20 volunteers completed six projects, including two at Wesley United Methodist Church, one at Laura B. Anderson Elementary, and three at private citizens’ homes. The projects ranged from cleaning and planting existing garden beds to adding planters to properties. Iron Fox Farm provided seedlings for the project, including broccoli, tomatoes, watermelon, and flowers.
Click on the arrows to see more photos of Garden Week.
Despite torrential rains off and on during the week, organizers were stationed at core neighborhood parks to help get individual gardens started.
This week-long event was part of the Community Food Security Network’s efforts, hosted by Sioux Falls Thrive, to ensure equitable and sustainable access to nutritious food in every neighborhood, with respect for diverse cultural practices.