NH Gleans
 


Gleaning is gathering and distributing food recovered from local producers to organizations in an effort to increase food access in their communities. Vegetables, fruits, and other foods from fields, orchards, gardens, greenhouses, and markets are recovered by volunteers and delivered to community members who can use them. The goal: Nothing goes to waste and no one goes hungry. Gleaning represents a relationship with the local landscape and community that is based in generosity, strength, and hope. By coordinating and creating support for regional gleaning efforts, NH Gleans is helping to ensure a more robust, responsive, and efficient food system where everyone can share in the bounty.

See how we have grown. Annual reports are on the Documents page.

Here's how NH Gleans works

  • Many commercial growers and private homeowners have fruit trees, bushes, vines or entire orchards and fields that produce more fresh fruit or vegetables than they can harvest. We invite them to register their crops online. Donations are tax deductible.

  • Working closely with growers, NH Gleans staff or volunteer leaders organize gleans to gather the fresh produce. Registered volunteer pickers sign up online, checking off a liability waiver that protects crop owners.

  • The produce collected is distributed by local food banks and food pantries to our neighbors in need.

Gleaning types

  • Field: Gleaners pick the fruit or vegetable off of its plant

  • Pickup: Already harvested food is picked up at the farm or food producer site

  • Market: Food is picked up from a farmer's market or another place that aggregates food from multiple different producers

  • Dropoff: Food is produced at a donation site by a home gardener or commercial producer

    • Gleaning sources

  • Residential: Food grown in a home garden

  • Charitable gardens: Food grown by a community specifically for charitable donation; for example, community gardens

  • Farms

  • Farmers' markets

  • Anywhere food is grown or produced in New Hampshire

    • For more information: What Is Gleaning? (Seacoast Eat Local)