Salinas, CA – Ag Against Hunger coordinates an annual fundraiser called the “New York Express” every October. This year, a truckload of donated iceberg lettuce, celery and cauliflower from Salinas was sold at Hunt’s Point in New York City, raising $14,034 for the Salinas based non-profit. Ocean Mist Farms, The Nunes Company, Steinbeck Country Produce, Taylor Farms, Tanimura and Antle and Dole Fresh Vegetables donated pallets of iceberg lettuce, celery and cauliflower for this fundraiser, which benefits Ag Against Hunger’s fall and winter produce distribution programs. The funds raised will also help to fill the salad bars for local schools through AAH’s More Produce for Schools program.
C.H. Robinson donated the associated transportation and delivery costs for the product that travelled from Salinas to New York. M&R Tomato Distributors, Inc. of New York sold the product, which was coordinated through Denise Goodman, of M&R Tomato, free of charge to benefit Ag Against Hunger.
Alicia Cask, Board Member for Ag Against Hunger and Transportation Planner for Fresh Express/Chiquita says, “On behalf of the Board of Directors of Ag Against Hunger, I would like to express our heartfelt ‘Thank You’ to everyone involved again in our annual fall fundraiser. We are so very grateful for all the continued generosity and support from our local shipper and carrier partners. Without all the commitment and support of our local growers, we could not make this yearly fundraiser a success. The proceeds from this event will help us to continue to serve the local needy communities with healthy and nutritious choices of fruits and vegetables.” The money raised represents nearly 351,000 servings of fresh vegetables and fruit for people utilizing food bank services.
Since 1990, Ag Against Hunger has collected over 218 million pounds of fresh, nutritious surplus produce from over 50 tri-county grower-shippers and distributed it to food banks throughout the West Coast. The produce is distributed in Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties first, where it feeds over 158,000 low-income people each month through local food banks. After local needs are satisfied, the produce is then available to over 240 agencies for distribution to millions more in need. To learn more, visit www.agagainsthunger.org, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter @AgAgainstHunger.
Source: Ag Against Hunger