Real Food Share
Cultivating community-based health through producing and donating fresh produce to those in need.
Leader
Sean Fitzpatrick
Location
197 Huntingtown Rd Newtown, CT 06470
About the project
Real Food Share is a non-profit in Newtown, CT formed by an amazing group of volunteers that value community, the environment, and supporting those in need. Our team's incredible efforts have put us in the position to donate 100 baskets of fresh produce every week to food-insecure families in our community.
We are hard at work maximizing the amazing opportunities and diverse resources available in town. Last year we partnered with Sticks and Stones Farm, restoring their 10,000 sq/ft giving garden. The NHS Greenery Class was our second partner, as we harvested their outdoor gardens during the summer in the absence of their class. In all, we donated over 700lbs of produce to the FAITH Food Pantry, the Nunnawauk Meadows Retirement Community, and the Senior Center. We have added a third production partner for 2020, the Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary, as we are preparing to manage the 30 raised beds in the middle of their restored meadows.
All of the land we are managing will be treated following the principles of regenerative agriculture, placing a primary focus on the health of the soil and surrounding environments. We are prepared to be a hub for any volunteers interested or needing hours in agriculture, food security, or environment-friendly practices. We will have class offerings, resources, and workshops available for what we consider 21st Century Health Skills: healthy food identification, nutrition education, simple food preparation, and horticulture basics.
Outreach efforts are ongoing to publicize our message as we strive to meet our donation goal this upcoming season. With your help, not only can we produce enough food for our community members, but we can serve as a hyper-local example for neighboring towns on how to maximize resources for the greater good.
The Steps
- Complete the building of the hoop house for seed starting and season extension, heated by a closed-circuit energy system run on a compost pile and solar panels (March 2020)
- Order all of our seeds, plants, bushes, starting supplies, and amendments (March 2020)
- Build the farm stands at both Sticks and Stones and CVH Animal Sanctuary (April 2020)
- Begin planting (April/May 2020)
- Harvest and Donations Begin (May/June 2020)
- Events and Workshops (May/June 2020)
- Week to Week Operations Management for volunteers and interns (May through November 2020)
Why we‘re doing it
Healthy food access should be viewed as a fundamental right for everyone. Our society has a disconnection from our food sources unlike any other time in history. Food typically travels 1500 miles from farm to plate, with 50% of its nutrition depleted after 3 days. Chemicals, pesticides, and depleted soils have a major impact on the food that plays a large part in dictating our physical health outcomes.
Growing healthy food is a simple and beautiful practice that we are only a generation removed from. Maximizing available resources, partnerships, and volunteer efforts are the foundation of a hyper-local food system that supports the impoverished and struggling. Newtown, CT has relatively low poverty numbers (3-5%) but has up to 29% of residents reporting food insecurity in recent reports. By producing and donating food through environmentally-friendly practices, we are cultivating community health as best as we can.