Fresh Food for Every Vermont Neighbor
Eat your veggies! For many of us, summertime in Vermont is the season for fresh abundance. Grazing in the garden; crunching a sweet, earthy carrot pulled straight from the ground; popping a ripe cherry tomato in your mouth straight from the vine. And everything goes on the grill: those cherry tomatoes, young zucchini, asparagus, onions, and peppers.
We’re not all gardeners or farmers (I’m neither), yet our bodies and souls are nourished when we eat fresh, whole foods. For neighbors with low or fixed incomes, it can be a stretch to have fresh food on the table regularly.
That’s where your Vermont Foodbank comes in. Whether at a free, fresh produce event, senior housing distribution, or a local food shelf, a staff member or volunteer is there with a smile, a new recipe, and the help to make this week that much easier.
Access to fresh food from Vermont Foodbank prioritizes dignity and equity for all neighbors to eat in ways that bring us nourishment and joy. Thank you for your help in making this work possible!
John Sayles CEO
Community Voices Shape Program Choices
In Bennington County, community members with lived experience of food insecurity have informed Foodbank program design to ensure people have better access to the food they need.
Fresh fruits and vegetables are some of the food items most consistently requested by community members experiencing food insecurity.
Here at Vermont Foodbank, we believe everyone should have access to the nourishing food they want and need. Each month, the Foodbank partners with schools and hospitals statewide to host fresh produce events—made possible with your support—where people can pick up free fruits and veggies for their households.
This past year, the Foodbank created a special community advisory board to redesign one of the fresh produce events in Bennington County. The advisory board was made up of individuals who had lived experiences of food insecurity and attended the local fresh produce event. The goal of creating the advisory board was to include participant voice and influence in food access program design.
“I was interested [in joining the advisory board] because I am a teacher at the local high school and work for United Counseling Services, where I see so many families and students who are dealing with food insecurity,” shares one board member, Ajay. “This board seemed to be the perfect place for me to join to see if I could make a difference
in the community and find new ways to help with the food insecurity problem we have in town.”
The group went through trainings in leadership and trauma-informed practice, and learned about Vermont Foodbank before moving into decisionmaking about redesigning the fresh produce event.
“We as a board worked very hard to figure out what is the best method for a lot of families to access this great program,” Ajay explains.
The advisory board decided to move the produce event from a large parking lot on the edge of town with a drive-through distribution model to a downtown, walk-up event where folks can select their own food items.
Other decisions included distributing additional food items (like pasta, sauce, butter, and protein) during a limited time frame, creating opportunities for produce pickups outside the regular event hours, and improving communication about the event by creating a webpage on a local service partner’s website.
Centering participants in food program design is one way Vermont Foodbank is addressing the root causes of food insecurity. Neighbors experiencing hunger know best the realities of
food insecurity, and elevating this expertise creates opportunities for more effective food distribution. Because of your support, we’re able to continue exploring how to end hunger in Vermont for good, while providing the food people need today.
“A program like [this] is very important to the town of Bennington because it literally saves families from going hungry. Giving these families every possible opportunity to get food to feed their children is what is most important to me, and I feel [this program] does that,” says Ajay.
“I had a great time being part of the community board. Being part of a team that was focused on improving the community and putting their hearts into the work was truly rewarding.”
“I hope after this project we are able to figure out how to solve the food insecurity issue not only in Bennington but also in the state; what techniques and locations work best for people to have the most access to get the food they need.”
A special thanks to the community advisory board members for sharing their time, expertise, and leadership. Read more about how the Foodbank has been exploring ways to address the root causes of food insecurity at vtfoodbank.org/learnabout-your-foodbank/innovation-lab. To learn more about the Foodbank’s fresh produce events visit vtfoodbank.org/veggievango.
Produce is available in every Vermont county, thanks to help from you.
Love, Spice, Everything Nice in Rutland and
Neighbors are introduced to delicious, simple ways to prepare Vermontgrown produce, with help from you.
Across the state, the Foodbank is sharing recipes and cooking demonstrations with visitors at fresh produce distributions. Together, we’re making sure more people in Vermont can bring home the fresh food they want and need, along with information on how to prepare and enjoy it.
Things were heating up outside BROC Community Action Center—one of Vermont Foodbank’s 353 partner organizations—in Rutland, though the brilliant sun had little to do with it.
“Woooh that’s spicy,” a man says, waving his hand in front of his mouth.
Just outside the food shelf and community center, Foodbank staff member Meg set up a cooking demonstration and sampling. The recipe for the day: Micro-Greens, Zhug Yogurt Sauce, and Roasted Chickpeas on Pita, and the gathering crowd was happy to give the unique recipe a try.
“This is the first time I’ve ever tried [chickpeas], they’re not bad,” says Bam, a Rutland resident visiting BROC that day. “Normally I don’t eat
vegetables…when I was little my parents, we had a garden, we used to feed like the whole neighborhood, and I grew up not liking them because I had to work in the garden all the time.”
After crossing paths with Meg, that could change.
“But I like that; that was good though,” Bam says with a laugh.
Behind her, Meg walks onlookers through the steps to make the simple dish. A trained chef and natural people-person, Meg laughs, jokes, and carries on conversations while roasting chickpeas, mixing up the zhug yogurt sauce, and assembling the final pita samples. The ingredients—many of them local— are all available at no cost to visitors that day, thanks to support from donors like you.
Bam says she comes down to BROC “when things start getting tough.” She’s never been on a day when a cooking demonstration was happening, but she’s enjoying it.
“I like it because I can see what goes in the food,” she says. “It’s nice and clean and [Meg’s] got a positive attitude!”
A steady stream of folks stop, munch, and ask for details about the dish. One recurring question: what’s zhug? The answer: a spicy sauce from Yemen that blends cilantro, parsley, lemon, garlic, and jalapeno peppers.
For Meg, connecting with people and sharing her passion for cooking and food is what she enjoys
best about Foodbank cooking demonstrations. She develops recipes for each event based on what’s going to be available to people and what she’s excited about.
Meg says in her experience, most people who sample the dishes at cooking demos decide that the fruit or vegetable being featured is something they’ll eat more of in the future. But the recipes don’t have to be fancy to get that reaction.
“I believe even the simplest recipes are made better when seasoned with love,” Meg says, while gently pushing chickpeas around in the frying pan. “Cooking demonstrations allow me the privilege of sharing the love.”
Are You Interested in Leaving a Gift in Your Will?
Over the years, many donors have informed us of their intention to include a gift in their wills to Vermont Foodbank. Ending hunger takes generations. You can join these supporters and make sure help is always available by including the Foodbank in your will or estate plan. For more information, contact Lindsey Harty at 802-2791650 or lharty@vtfoodbank.org.
Joy for Your Summer Table Fresh
Try a few of our favorite recipes for late-summer produce at home! Foodbank staff develop recipes that are delicious and simple to prepare, using one fresh fruit or vegetable grown in Vermont as the primary ingredient. Recipes are shared, along with cooking demonstrations and samples, at fresh produce distribution locations across the state. Thank you for your help ensuring neighbors have access to fresh produce, and ideas for ways to enjoy it.
Pickled Rainbow Radishes
• 1 purple daikon radish
• 2-3 watermelon radishes
• 1 cup rice wine or apple cider vinegar
• ½ cup mirin cooking seasoning
• 2 tablespoons white miso paste
• 1 tablespoon honey
• ½ cup water
• ¼ teaspoon salt
1. Wash radishes. Remove stems and trim ends. Use a vegetable peeler to remove skin.
2. Using a sharp knife, evenly cut radishes in half length-wise. Position flat side of radish on cutting board and slice into 1/8” thick half rounds.
3. Combine radish slices. Fill two wide-mouth, 16-ounce mason jars with colorful slices.
4. Combine all other ingredients in a four-cup container and combine well using a whisk or immersion blender. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
5. Pour liquid over radishes. Put on lid and lightly shake to combine.
6. Let sit for 30 minutes for a light, crisp pickle and brightest colors. For maximum flavor, let sit three hours or overnight in refrigerator. The pickling liquid will turn a light pink and the radishes will soften.
Kale and Apple Salad
• 3-4 cups kale, small chop
• 1 small apple, cored and sliced thin
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons dressing (a vinaigrette is nice)
• Salt and pepper, to taste
1. Strip washed kale leaves off stems. Small chop and place in large bowl.
2. Add olive oil to the bowl and massage the kale for a few minutes, until it becomes bright green and softens.
3. Core washed apple, cut in half and slice thinly. Add to massaged kale.
4. Add dressing, toss well to mix. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve at room temperature.
5. Refrigerate leftovers.
Chef’s Tip: Add nuts, dried cranberries, raisins, or sunflower seeds.
Find more fresh recipes and information at vtfoodbank.org/vt-fresh..
Fresh Produce Shouldn’t Be a Luxury
During the long, hot days of summer, biting into a fresh vegetable or piece of fruit brings a particular joy. The burst of a cherry tomato sun-warmed on the vine, the cool snap of cucumber, the pop of sweet corn kernels smoky from the grill.
But for too many families and neighbors in Vermont, the joy and benefits of fresh produce are out of reach.
“I couldn’t afford fresh fruits and vegetables with such unaffordable costs of living. I had to choose between filling my car with gas for doctor appointments or buying groceries,” a community member recently explained.
With grocery prices and other living costs still extraordinarily high, and wages not keeping up, people are being forced to make trade-offs when it comes to buying food and paying bills. When a grocery budget is maxed out, fresh foods are often the first to come off the shopping list.
Vermont Foodbank continues to prioritize making fresh produce accessible to neighbors facing hunger across the state, but we can’t do it alone. Last year, about half of the food Vermont Foodbank distributed to the community was fresh food, with more than 90,000 households bringing free, fresh food home from direct distribution events.
We need your help to continue making the purchase and distribution of fresh foods a priority. A gift of $35 can help provide a household with $145 worth of groceries, connecting neighbors with nourishing food when they need it.
Together, we can help make sure that the nourishing foods people want and need are available to fill everyone’s tables, all year long.
If you or someone you know could use help accessing food, please be in touch. Our contact information is below, and our website is available in many languages spoken in Vermont.