The Associated Press carried a wire story today titled Volunteers Hunt Produce to Feed Hungry, where they highlighted some of the efforts of the Society of St. Andrew.
GOLDEN, Texas - Volunteers fanned across Texas farm fields to pick up sweet potatoes missed by mechanical harvesters, joining a national network to feed the poor with produce that might otherwise go to waste, from California oranges to Indiana beans and Florida squash.I think this is just fascinating. There are plenty of canned goods drives and food banks around, but this is the first I'd heard of a group that collects fresh produce for the hungry, and their donations are coming from the farms producing it, not from end-consumers. I think it's an excellent idea, and an example of the kind of wonderful work that charities are capable of.In this rural community about 75 miles east of Dallas, the weekend effort is called the Texas Yam Jam.
The Society of Saint Andrew operates out of all 50 states; if you're interested in seeing what they're doing in your state, select it on their locations map.
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It's far from the first. In Seattle for decades the big collector of food that everyone hears about is Northwest Second Harvest. But it is second because first is collection from the producers, the farmers.