The Food Bank for NYC has teamed up with Shop & Stop to bring its Green Sidewalk program, an initiative designed to provide fresh nutritious foods for low-income New Yorkers in underserved areas, to East Flatbush.
Over an eight-week period, the Food Bank will deliver fresh fruits and vegetables to the food pantry at the Hope Center Development Corporation for local residents to pick up for free!
"At a time when one in five New Yorkers relies on a food pantry or soup kitchen, we're thrilled to bring fresh produce to Central Brooklyn," said Dr. Camesha Grant, vice president for Community Connections and Reach at Food Bank For New York City. "We know our clients who are faced with food insecurity have limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables. The Green Sidewalk program is an innovative way to expand their access to free fresh produce at their local food pantry."
The initiative launched in 2016 to address two big issues: low-income New Yorkers struggle to afford fresh fruits and vegetables, and the fact that most food pantries lack the storage and refrigeration necessary to stock large amounts of produce.
By supplying fresh fruits and vegetables to pantries and helping to distribute it to the local community that same day, Food Bank sidesteps both issues with the Green Sidewalk program and increases access to vital nutritious food.
"In the morning, we load up trucks with fresh produce and bring it directly to their sidewalks," explained Margarette Purvis, president and CEO of the Food Bank for NYC to Downtown NYC. "We set up a 'shopping' experience under a tent, along with nutrition information, recipes and other activities."
East Flatbush residents can stop by the Hope Center on Friday mornings to pick up greens, vegetables and fruits at no cost. The Green Sidewalk initiative will run through the end of September. The Food Bank strongly encourages anyone who would like to receive produce to reach out to The Hope Center for more information.
