I have highlighted a number of organizations that do wonderful work in different areas and written about the people behind the idea. And even though I don’t have a huge following, I am asking that you help me spread the word about Farm Share, not only because of the good work they do, but because Patricia Robbins, the President and CEO, has developed a system that is, and can be, a model for similar undertakings throughout the country. She was not some billionaire who turned to altruism. She is a woman who worked hard all her life, then determined that she wanted to take on the task of re-packing fresh, nutritious fruits and vegetables that would otherwise be thrown away and provide those at no charge to organizations that feed the hungry. By being located in the heart of South Florida’s agricultural center and having a career in the wholesale seafood business, Patricia set out to harness her business and logistics expertise into Farm Share with phenomenal numbers to show their success. The real story is told on their web site at http://www.farmshare.org but I will throw out a few facts to make the point.
They work in a public-private partnership with the state (as part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture programs) to maximize support that can be provided to more than 500 organizations they give food to. They also have periodic Food Distribution events where volunteers join them to support hundreds and sometimes thousands of families in a four-hour period. They maintain a small staff to keep their administrative costs down to under 3% – a remarkable achievement for a non-profit, and through the techniques they have honed, they can provide 11.5 pounds of food per every $1 of donation. On average, they distribute more than 15 million pounds of nutritious food to approximately 600,000 low-income households across Florida each year. In fact, their reputation for efficiency means they have farmers from a multi-state area that make food available to them. Their system enables them to often have a mere twenty-four hour turnaround from receipt of tractor trailers filled with goods to that same food being repackaged and into the hands of soup kitchens, food pantries and similar organizations. Much of Farm Share’s cost goes to paying for the transportation of the food because again, they do not charge one cent to the organizations they support. They have also begun to be offered non-food items such as truckloads of bicycle helmets and child car seats, but when tight dollars can’t fund transportation for both, food is given the priority in keeping with their primary mission.
Farm Share now operates out of the original location, plus two others in Florida and they would love to expand. They are more than happy to share their knowledge and give tours of the packing house to show their operation. If you are looking for a charity that is making a tremendous difference in people’s lives, productively utilizing what would be tons of wasted food, and doing so with remarkable stewardship, then Farm Share is one such group.
