Two weeks ago, we began a two-month pilot study by offering frozen fruit and vegetables produced by Valley Veggies in Greenfield, MA. We started off the program by offering diced green peppers as well as blueberries. This past Saturday we offered a diced carrot/parsnip blend and this weekend we will be offering spinach or diced carrots.
These fruits and vegetables are regionally grown, and produced by Valley Veggies in Greenfield, MA (the link is to a short article about the organization). We are purchasing cases of 12 oz. packages from Valley Veggies through Food Connects in Brattleboro at a steep discount for the pilot study. If the frozen produce is popular with our shoppers, we will likely seek outside support to continue the effort.
During the Summer months here in Putney, fresh fruits and vegetables are abundant, and the Foodshelf and its shoppers have always benefited from donations made by many of our local growers. It is much more difficult to provide such amazing produce during the winter months. We are proud to be able to offer some regionally sourced, flash-frozen produce to our shoppers. We have consulted with Nancy Schaefer, a Community Health Team health coach:
I am so delighted to hear about the Putney Foodshelf’s pilot program, which will offer to their shoppers frozen fruits and vegetables. I work as a Health Coach, and I connect with referred patients from our local hospital and 10+ health care practices. The majority of the patients referred to me have one or more health conditions where food choices can improve or greatly impair their health outcomes. Many of my patients utilize supplemental food resources; additionally, many have extenuating circumstances that prevent them from spending much time cooking/preparing meals. Many canned food options are nutritionally devoid and/or loaded with sodium, sugars, etc. I am hopeful that this pilot program will prove successful, and it can be a model for other food shelves and other free-food resources. Thank you so much for your hard work and commitment to improving the health and well- being of our valued community members.
Nancy Schaefer, CHT Health Coach BMH/ HCRS