About
The Harvest Share is a food system recovery program. We aim at capturing fresh produce – such as fruit, vegetables, and nuts – that would otherwise go to waste. We then make this produce available to picking volunteers and local service agencies that assist individuals in need. The program pursues different environmental and socio-economic goals:
- To reduce waste
- To reduce wildlife attractants
- To support families and individuals in need
- To reduce carbon footprint related to food consumption
The Harvest Share program also provides support to people who are unable to harvest their own fruit, vegetables, or nuts. We organize teams of volunteers to harvest the produce. This service is free of charge and the harvested produce is separated three ways; between the tree owners, the volunteer pickers, and local social or charitable organizations.
Tree Owners
If you have produce that needs picking, please contact the Harvest Share Administration Coordinator during the months of operation – between June and November – by email: [email protected]
Picking Volunteers
If you are interested in picking produce for a share in the harvest, you are invited to contact the Harvest Share Administration Coordinator during the months of operation – between June and November – by email at [email protected]
History
Decades ago, when the Creston community was significantly smaller and more reliant on local produce as a primary food source, people would rally around the farmers to harvest and distribute food.
Over the years the industrialization of farming and commodification of foodstuffs changed the landscape. Today, the sheer number and size of commercial operations demand less reliance on the community and greater dependence on migrant workers to get produce to market. Additionally, the growth in local population not directly or actively involved in agriculture, the ever-increasing reliance on food importation, as well as the consequent separation from our food system, have all contributed to a disconnect between resident farmers and non-farmers. As a result, Creston became a community where there was such bounty that tonnes of fresh produce fell to the ground unharvested. Yet within this conspicuous abundance, some people did not have enough to eat.
To address the abundance and yet need of food, the Creston Valley Food Action Coalition implemented the Harvest Share Program in 2008. This was the beginning of a multifaceted program that would bring the community together.