Harvest Hunger Solutions Locally

Founders of Springdale Farms Peter and Bernadette Seely

Down in the dirt, bacteria and microbes are providing nutrients to plants while up on the ground, the staff at Springdale Farm works to provide nutritious food to families in Wisconsin. The Plymouth, WI farm—the first-ever community supported agriculture (CSA) in the state—was established in 1988 by Peter Seely and his wife Bernadette. With 13 hoop houses and 40 acres of farmland, the farm produces winter squash, melons, cucumbers, zucchini, potatoes, onions, eggplants, and more. Peter’s vision for providing healthy food aligns perfectly with Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin’s belief that access to nutritious food is a right for all.

“Ever since I was young I was convinced that people needed access to whole foods, foods that were less processed,” he shared.

Thanks to a grant awarded through the Bright Idea Fund within the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, clients of local pantries enjoy fresh, organic produce from Springdale Farm. Through the Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin Farm Link program, Springdale Farm grows dedicated acres of food for the food bank and delivers them in bulk, saving resources and expenses associated with the traditional sorting and packaging for wholesale markets like grocers.

Thanks to American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding, we are doing even more to support the local economy through partnerships with local farmers like Waseda Farms, all while stocking pantry partner shelves.

Acres are harvested and all the food is provided to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin where volunteers help sort out the quality fruits and vegetables for delivery to food pantries. By being on the front end of the food chain, the food bank gets as much product as possible as close to harvest as possible.

“Our Bright Idea Fund Grants Committee chose to award a grant for the Farm Link program because it creatively addressed the question of how to make high-quality produce available to everyone in a cost effective, environmentally-friendly, sustainable way,” said Carolyn Desrosiers, community engagement manager at the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region.

Every few weeks the farm delivers the fruits and vegetables that they are contracted to grow as well as any surplus. Bernadette is glad that they have the help of Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin to distribute food to the pantries.

“It’s important to us that we not waste large quantities of food. When we have excess, we want to share that with local people,” explained Bernadette. “We sometimes have 1,000 pounds of food that we are trying not to waste and that’s too large for the pantries who can take maybe 10 pounds at a time.”

Springdale Farm is part of Farm Link, a program established by Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin in partnership with the Medical College of Wisconsin that connects a network of growers to provide healthy food options to food pantries and their clients. Farm Link creates mutually beneficial relationships among farmers, the food bank, pantries, and the community. The Farm Link program does more than support pantries; it supports farmers.

The Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region recognizes the power of this network and the impact working together can have on the mission to solve hunger.

“At the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, we know that Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin is a leader in ending hunger in our area,” shared Desrosiers. “Their strength and scale, as well as their large network of partners, means they see challenges and opportunities from a systems view. It is exciting to partner with an organization that can drive change at that level.”