We are delighted to announce that Gleaning Cornwall Network, which organises volunteer groups to harvest crops that would otherwise go to waste and distributes this fresh produce to food banks and food poverty charities, has been awarded a £2,500 grant through our Grants for Good programme.
Gleaning Cornwall Network secured the grant, following a vote by John Good Group employees after making the shortlist out of more than 300 applications.
Gleaning is the act of collecting leftover crops from farmers’ fields after they have been commercially harvested or on fields where it is not economically profitable to harvest.
The Gleaning Cornwall Network organises volunteer groups to harvest crops that would otherwise go to waste and distributes this fresh produce to food banks and food poverty charities. The project and its ever-growing network is helping to build healthy and resilient communities, bringing together volunteer harvesters, drivers, local farmers and people who work with and use food banks and food poverty charities. In the last 3 months of 2021, they harvested over 50 tonnes of fresh veg and delivered it to over 55 food projects across Cornwall and Plymouth.
“It’s so exciting and motivating to receive recognition and support for our project! The Gleaning Cornwall Network is just over a year old, but in that time the project have grown and grown. Whilst that is partly because we have a fantastic team behind us, we know it’s also because it’s a project that just makes sense! Farmers do not want to see their produce go to waste, volunteers increasingly want to get outside and reconnect with the land, their food and their community, and food banks and other food charities are in dire need of help and are especially grateful for the healthy fresh produce we can supply them. We really believe this is all about the network and finding ways to collaborate and support each other, and that is why we are always reaching out to other charities, local authorities and businesses. We believe that together this network and project can be a real force for good.”
Holly, Gleaning Cornwall Network
In a short space of time, Gleaning Cornwall Network has already made such a big difference to people while reducing food waste at the same time. Without them, tonnes of perfectly good food would stay in the ground instead of making its way to food banks and charities who need it now more than ever before. As well as coordinating lots of volunteers, organising the logistics of getting veg all over the county in the most environmentally friendly way possible, negotiating with farmers to glean their land, the project has exciting ideas for the future and how they can make the project sustainable for the long term.
Michelle, Matthew Good Foundation