Food and Nutrition
April 3-9 is National Public Health Week 2023, and we are joining American Public Health Association (APHA) in “Centering and Celebrating Cultures in Health.” Each day this week, we are highlighting a community health program or organization whose mission and work align with APHA’s theme of the day. Together, we make health happen.
“Accessibility and affordability of nutritious food can determine a lifetime of health outcomes…While broad structural shifts will be most effective for long-term improvements in food and nutrition, we have promising stopgap solutions from the local to national levels.” American Public Health Association
Read the APHA’s full post regarding food and nutrition in English or in Spanish. Lea la publicación completa de APHA sobre alimentación y nutrición en inglés o en español.
Food and Nutrition
Food insecurity is a persistent challenge for many communities in Maine and around the world, with millions of people facing hunger and malnutrition every day. Nearly 140,000 Mainers struggle to get enough to eat, according to Feeding America. In Washington County, 1 in 4 children, and in Hancock County, 1 in 6 children are food insecure, or lacking access to enough healthy, nutritious food to support an active, healthy life. (Feeding America.)
Food pantries, local farms and businesses that donate food, and community volunteers play an essential role in addressing this issue by providing critical support to vulnerable populations. These community-supported resources are vital for people who struggle to afford nutritious meals regularly. They offer a lifeline to individuals and families who may not have access to enough food or resources to purchase it.
Food pantries often rely on donations from local farms and businesses, as well as community volunteers, to stock their shelves and ensure that they can distribute a variety of nutritious food options to those in need. These donations help to bolster the supply of fresh, healthy foods in communities where access may be limited, while also supporting local food systems and economies.
In addition to providing much-needed food assistance, food pantries, local farms and businesses that donate food, and community volunteers also help to build stronger, more resilient communities. By working together to tackle food insecurity, they create a sense of shared purpose and foster a culture of generosity and compassion. Volunteers who work at their local food pantries, for example, often form strong bonds with their fellow volunteers and with the people they serve, creating a supportive network that extends far beyond the walls of the pantry. Local farms and businesses that donate food also contribute to this sense of community, as providing fresh local produce, dairy products, and meat to their clients.
The Hancock County Food Drive is happening now! Learn more.
It Takes a Community
Healthy Acadia’s Downeast Gleaning Initiative helps to reduce food insecurity by coordinating farm-based gleaning opportunities throughout Hancock and Washington counties. We connect volunteers with farms, orchards, farmers’ markets, and community gardens to collect surplus fruits and vegetables that would otherwise go to waste. We then manage the distribution of fresh produce to food pantries, community meal sites, rehabilitation programs, school backpack programs, and other community organizations.
“The Gleaning Initiative of Healthy Acadia is a program that has benefited the soup making that St. Brendan the Navigator Episcopal Church does monthly for Simmering Pot. Last summer we were regularly able to plan the soup we made for 120+ people around the beautiful gleaned produce that Healthy Acadia made available to us. The Gleaning organizer, Rachel Emus [Healthy Acacia’s Food Programs Manager in Hancock County], has a wonderful system worked out to notify groups about the available produce and expedite pick-up that works for the group. In the meantime the produce is stored beautifully and retains its freshness. Working with the Gleaners is a pleasure.” - Josephine Jacob, Simmering Pot Meal Program
"Many of our clients look for fresh produce more than anything else, and Healthy Acadia really helps to fill that need for them!!" - Ken Hoogerhyde, Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry
Healthy Acadia also co-convenes the Hancock County Food Security Network, in partnership with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, and the Washington County Food Pantry Network, in partnership with the Food and Fuel Alliance. These Networks share resources, creatively solve problems, and organize advocacy efforts among the food pantries and community meal sites across our region.
I have established relationships with many of the dedicated people around this [Washington] County who are working to care for people who are food insecure. Back in the winter, one of the active members of the Center St Congregational Church, which, sponsors the Machias Area Food Pantry, reached out. "I have a problem,” he stated. “We have access to a fair amount of food on Wednesday morning that will not keep until our Monday distribution day. Our volunteers can't take on any more right now. Do you have any ideas about how we can get this food out to folks who need it?"
I thought about it and reflected back to the pandemic's Farm to Trunk food distributions. “Let me get back to you,” I responded. “I have an idea." I texted Cindy Rossi Moore, who during the pandemic not only showed up to help at many of the weekly truck distributions but also consistently brought an amazing crew of 3-6 Machias Memorial High School track and field students along with snacks and infectious enthusiasm.
Moore didn’t disappoint, heading over with a group of students. She asked what was needed and quickly delegated her students to the tasks. - "Get on the truck and help move boxes... start loading them on the tailgate.... move down the line and ask cars to unlock their trunks,“ and on it went.
Like clockwork, as the weeks went by we all evolved into a smooth and well-oiled team of food box distributors... small time saviors to people who sometimes cried their thanks, and were always incredibly grateful for the food at a time when everything was a struggle.
- Regina Grabrovac, Healthy Acadia Food Programs Manager, Washington County
Everyone at the Table: Maine’s Roadmap to End Hunger by 2030
Everyone at the Table: Maine’s Roadmap to End Hunger by 2030 is a comprehensive plan developed by a coalition of government agencies, non-profit organizations, and community members in Maine to address the issue of food insecurity and hunger in the state. The roadmap aims to ensure that all Maine residents have access to healthy and affordable food, and to eliminate hunger by 2030.
The roadmap identifies several key strategies to achieve this goal, including increasing access to healthy food through the creation of community gardens, farmers markets, and mobile markets; expanding school meal programs and summer meal programs for children; improving access to federal nutrition assistance programs like SNAP; supporting local food producers and businesses to increase the availability of healthy food; and promoting policies that address the root causes of hunger and poverty, such as affordable housing and living wage jobs.
The roadmap also recognizes the importance of community engagement and collaboration in addressing food insecurity, and emphasizes the need for partnerships between government, non-profit organizations, businesses, and community members.
Together we make health happen.
To make a donation to support Healthy Acadia’s programming and initiatives, click here or send a check by mail to Healthy Acadia, PO Box 1710, Ellsworth, ME, 04605. Thank you for your support!
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