GOVERNOR BEEBE’S WEEKLY COLUMN AND RADIO ADDRESS: A SECOND HARVEST TO FEED ARKANSANS

LITTLE ROCK

Sustainability is about more than finding better ways to use fewer of our resources; it’s also about getting the most out of what we produce. In a State built upon agriculture, Arkansas is finding new and creative ways of getting the most from our harvests. Volunteers are working with Arkansas farmers to collect excess produce from the fields and get it to the homes and tables of hungry Arkansans. And now, the State is providing additional help.
Last year, the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance began coordinating with local farmers to gain access to their land after harvests were completed in order to collect excess food that remained in the fields. Groups of volunteers were then formed, and these volunteers gathered nearly 150,000 pounds of corn, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, peaches, cabbage, and snap peas. This food was, in turn, distributed to food banks and pantries around the region, giving them the rare resource of fresh produce to provide to hungry Arkansas families.
With a year of experience under its belt, the Relief Alliance has set its goals much higher this season, and already more than 236,000 pounds of food has been gleaned and distributed. Leaders of the Relief Alliance have also coordinated their efforts with the Arkansas Department of Correction, and beginning this month, supervised inmate crews will assist with the gleaning. These are the same crews that pick up debris after tornadoes, fill sandbags to avert flooding, and assist with maintenance at parks.
Inmate crews will be used at farms near DOC facilities, and used only as much as the Department can afford within its current budget. There will be no additional expense to taxpayers for inmate assistance in the gleaning project. However, there is expected to be a significant increase in the amount of produce gathered and distributed to Arkansas food banks and Arkansas families in need. This will help to ensure that no child, senior citizen, man, or woman in Arkansas goes without food.
Providing healthful, fresh fruits and vegetables to food-aid recipients is a rarity. Gleaning takes food that would otherwise rot in fields and end up in landfills and reroutes it to appreciative families who need it. The majority of the work will still be done by volunteer crews, and if you’d like more information about gleaning on Arkansas farms, call the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance at 501-399-9999.
Arkansans have always been a shining example of people who take care of each other. While we are generous to worthwhile charities and other good causes, it is rare for Arkansans to see a cause where the benefit is this tactile, this direct, and this focused on the basic needs of our people. Our farmers help grow the food that feeds the world, and now we are working to make sure that the food that is left in the fields goes to feed more needy Arkansans.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!