Kalamazoo Farmers Market shoppers can help fight hunger
How your visit to the Farmers Market can help a hungry family at Kalamazoo Loaves and Fishes.
During summer months, the vendors at the Kalamazoo Farmers Market donate hundreds of pounds of unsold produce and baked goods to Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes (KLF) when market hours close.
These donations allow Loaves & Fishes to provide fresh food to those who often can’t afford to purchase it on their own.
Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes and the Kalamazoo Farmers Market want to provide a way for others in the community to get involved in this initiative. There will be a Loaves & Fishes Farmers Market Donation Day during the Aug. 19 farmers market at 1204 Bank Street in Kalamazoo.
“We know that fresh, local food plays a vital role in overall health, and it shouldn’t be a luxury, but, sadly, for people with limited food budgets it often is,” say Loaves & Fishes officials. “Donations during this event not only help families in our community, they also support local growers and ensure more dollars stay local.”
To get involved, shoppers can head to the market between the hours of 7 a.m. and 2 p.m. and purchase what they’d like to donate for those in need. Small paper bags with Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes’ logo on them will be available for shoppers to carry donated food. Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes staff will be on site with one of the organization’s signature white delivery trucks to accept donations from shoppers.
“The Kalamazoo Farmers Market has played a key role in KLF’s ability to increase the amount of fresh produce we provide to vulnerable citizens of our community,” says Marvin King, Food Procurement Coordinator at Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes. “Fresh produce was KLF’s top distributed food category during our last fiscal year, and that’s largely due to our partnership with PFC Markets.”
For more information about the Kalamazoo Farmers Market, visit pfcmarkets.com. For more information about Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes, visit kzoolf.org.
Source: Kalamazoo Loaves and Fishes
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