“The district receives weekly deliveries of farm-fresh, New Jersey-sourced fruits and vegetables as a part of a new farm-to-school pilot program that incentivizes the purchases of local foods from family farms,” according to a press release from The Common Market. “The pilot kicked off last month and will run through July."
"RWJBarnabas Health, the largest academic health care system in New Jersey is partnering with The Common Market to address food insecurity in 18 towns across the state from Jersey City to Toms River.
In 2021, RWJBH partnered with The Common Market to deliver Farm-Fresh Boxes of local produce, freshly baked bread, eggs, and yogurt, to RWJBH Hospitals across the state, which interns delivered to local food distribution sites, such as churches and food pantries."
"That is the motivation behind a pilot launched in March in Bridgeton and Camden by The Common Market, a nonprofit local distributor, to infuse locally grown fruit and vegetables and products into the lunch menu. The Common Market hopes to support diverse farmers in the state."
"The program has helped 25 small, organic farmers preserve and cultivate 355 acres of farmland around Atlanta, launching new generations of growers and a healthy locally produced food scene. Could Philly be next?"
"Core partners in this effort include the Camden City School District, Alliance for a Healthier Generation, The Common Market, Food Bank of South Jersey, FoodCorps, National Farm to School Network, Wellness in the Schools, Aramark and New Jersey American Water. These organizations, several of whom have been longstanding partners, will support nutrition education and training for students and staff, procurement of fresh, local foods and measurement for the program."
COVID-19 has increased childhood food insecurity rates. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia collaborated with Food Connect and The Common Market to deliver produce boxes to food-insecure families. Food Connect leveraged technology to use texting, scale delivery integrations, and optimize routing to deliver 95,000 pounds of food over a 16-week period. COVID-19 has increased childhood food insecurity rates. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia collaborated with Food Connect and The Common Market to deliver produce boxes to food-insecure families. Food Connect leveraged technology to use texting, scale delivery integrations, and optimize routing to deliver 95,000 pounds of food over a 16-week period.
"Bridgeton Public Schools are also working to increase local partnerships. This work is a continuation of a project that has been underway since the implementation of the Community Eligibility Provision – a program that allows schools to feed all students breakfast and lunch for free – in 2017. The county currently works with local producers The Common Market and Seashore Fruit & Produce. “[We] pride ourselves on being a nutrition hub for our students,” says Warren DeShields, Director of Food Services at Bridgeton Public Schools.
“Thanks to the partnership with The Common Market, along with other wholesalers, the City of Baltimore is now supplying 95 sites with 20,000 boxes of perishable food per week, totaling over 9.2 million pounds of food over the course of the pandemic,” says Holly Freishtat, Baltimore City Food Policy Director.
"The Community Health team partnered with nonprofits and local organizations to deliver vegetables, fruit, eggs, bread and yogurt to needy individuals and families. A key partner was The Common Market, a national nonprofit that distributes food from sustainable family farms to communities in need."
The Farmers to Families Food Box Program significantly increased access to fresh food in Philadelphia, particularly in neighborhoods that suffered the double-burden of economic instability and vulnerability to infection. Though the USDA program itself met some critique on the national level, in Philadelphia it was largely successful in supporting greater food access, and also returned value to regional farms.
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"Often as a chef and manager, trying to buy local has been at the least a pain. Building a relationship with The Common Market has completely changed that experience. I know that the product I am buying is local down to the farm where it was grown. I am able to let the students know the people who grow their food so that they feel a real connection to those farmers. I look forward to a long and growing relationship with the Common Market."
— Allen Clark, Food Service Director, Sage Dining Services, Mount Vernon Presbyterian School