Great Barrington — “I’m harvesting this very second these absolutely beautiful purple radishes for the winter market on Saturday,” Elizabeth Keen told me, via a spotty cell connection between South Egremont and Sandisfield, on Wednesday afternoon, “plus a heap of baby spinach, chard, arugula, and Brussels sprouts,” added Keen, who is at the helm of Indian Line Farm in South Egremont. Each week, following her farm’s community-supported agriculture pick-up on Tuesday afternoon, Keen takes her surplus produce — in the neighborhood of five to six shares of food over the course of the season — to the People’s Pantry, located on the street level in Saint James Place. It’s Keen’s way of sharing the bounty, a practice she calls “a win-win for everyone.”
Share the Bounty, a program of Berkshire Grown, has been in place for more than 17 years. Since its founding by Jonathan Hankin in 2002, Berkshire Grown’s pioneering project has bought more than $128,000 in CSA farm shares. Every dollar donated to Share the Bounty works two ways: First, it helps purchase fresh food from local farms, which supports local agriculture, preserves open space and strengthens our local economy; then the fresh food goes to a local food pantry or kitchen, which distributes the food to some of our hungry neighbors.
“This has been a lovely relationship,” said Keen of Share the Bounty. “This feels really good for me,” the farmer said, a feeling she is passing along to her members. This year, in addition to the two full CSA shares Berkshire Grown buys from her, Keen created an incentive: Each CSA member who donated $25 to Share the Bounty was entered into a drawing for dinner at John Andrews Restaurant. Keen was over the moon to have raised $3,000 in just two weeks. And she is sure there will be ongoing contributions. “I can give more and more produce, and I know the People’s Pantry has always been very, very excited about the [fresh food].” In fact, Berkshire Grown has purchased onions and carrots from Keen at wholesale pricing, which will be available at the People’s Pantry through the winter.
“It is an amazing program,” said Anna Houston of Off the Shelf in New Marlborough. “We are really proud to be part of it,” she added, noting that Berkshire Grown purchases her eggs at a slightly reduced, wholesale rate and those eggs are then distributed at WIC and People’s Pantry in Great Barrington. Houston’s hens provide 20 to 30 dozen eggs per week depending on the season (which slows down come winter). Mary Feuer, assistant director of family services and WIC at CHP, is on hand to assist those local families who benefit from Share the Bounty.“ It [has been] really delightful to be able to offer quality eggs and it also brought [WIC clients] to the farmers’ market, [many of whom] did not know [Houston] was there.” Feuer points to another benefit: Including eggs has changed how the WIC food pantry was structured. “We found [there was a need] for more fresh foods with a longer shelf life,” she explained. “We’ve now added cheese and yogurt in addition to eggs. It worked out really, really well.”
Food insecurity is a growing problem. In Berkshire County, roughly 10 percent of residents are food insecure, which means they do not have reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. And 1 in 3 of those individuals is a child. The myriad farm-to-pantry partnerships created through Share the Bounty are helping to bridge the gap for many families who struggle, regardless of why. Will and Ameila Conklin of Sky View Farm in Sheffield share their bounty in the form of subsidized meat shares, and Don Zasada of Caretaker Farm in Williamstown provides shares to Berkshire Food Project in nearby North Adams. Outside of the county but within the region, additional participants are Ridgway Farm in Cornwall, Abode Farm in New Lebanon, and the Farm at Miller’s Crossing in Hudson.
Margaret Moulton, executive director at Berkshire Grown, loves the seeds of connection sown through Share the Bounty. “[It] goes year-round and serves so many purposes,” she said. “What [the pantries] are getting from these farmers was picked yesterday,” she said of produce gleaned between May and October, adding, “it’s healthy, [and] it connects the community.” In addition to helping farmers and hungry families, this program gives farmers an opportunity to give back. Just this fall, Moulton received two unsolicited calls from farmers looking to donate through the winter. “The shares might shrink a bit, but there will be food available to donate,” was the resounding message. And of course Moulton replied with a “yes!” Share the Bounty gives farmers, who are focused on growing crops and getting them to market, a chance to participate in giving back. “This connects them in a meaningful way,” said Moulton, who sees connection as the root of the endeavor itself. “It’s a great part of this job,” she explained. “I can make a few calls, get the ball rolling, and it helps everyone.”
