Floyd County again receives Growing Together grant to expand fresh produce access and knowledge

By Bob Steenson, bsteenson@charlescitypress.com

A record number of communities across Iowa are set to receive Growing Together Mini-Grants through Iowa State University Extension and Outreach’s SNAP-Education program this year, again including Floyd County.

A total of 36 projects are being funded, with the goal of increasing food security and promoting healthy food access.

This will be the third year Floyd County is receiving an Extension mini-grant. As in the past, it will be used to support low-income families in maintaining community garden plots and other uses through hands-on support and nutrition education opportunities.

The project will also coordinate donations from home gardeners and high school agriculture students to the local food pantry.

Floyd County first received a $4,000 mini-grant in 2020, which was used to help support participation at the Clark Street community gardens for people in the state’s Buy. Eat. Live Healthy program.

Master Gardner and retired teacher Susan Jacob has applied for the grant and helped program participants with best gardening practices each year, as well as helping with produce distribution.

“Many of the Buy. Eat. Live Healthy participants may live in apartments or homes that do not have access to land for gardens,” Jacob said. “Some of them may never have gardened before.”

Money from that first 2020 mini-grant was also used to buy materials for Charles City High School FFA members to build raised vegetable gardens that were placed at Morningside Apartments, as well as buying plants and tools.

The intent was for the residents at Morningside to raise vegetables for their own use, and any additional vegetables would be donated to the Messiah’s Food Pantry.

Extra produce from the community gardens and from new high school FFA garden plots built at the county fairgrounds was also expected to be donated to the Food Pantry, but because of COVID-19 mitigation restrictions, Messiah’s Food Pantry was closed parts of 2020 and 2021.

That led to free community produce distributions from Trinity United Methodist Church the first year and from a spot near the food pantry at the Lions Club Rose Gardens last year, even after the food pantry reopened.

Additional produce was donated last year from the ISU Research Farm at the Borlaug Center near Nashua, and from Harrington’s Sweet Corn. Some of the donated produce was taken to congregate meal sites in the county.

Growing Together mini grants have been funded by the United States Department of Agriculture’s SNAP-Education since 2016, according to Lesley Mehmen Milius, director for Floyd County Extension and Outreach.

“Iowa was the first state to create this model, which has been replicated in Nebraska, Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan, Wyoming and Montana. Over the past six years, the mini-grants have resulted in food donations of over 532,000 pounds,” she said in a news release.

According to the Iowa Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, the 33 counties last year grew 91,772 pounds of fruits and vegetables that were donated to 119 food pantries and distribution sites – equal to more than 275,000 servings.

Some 267 Master Gardener volunteers contributed to last year’s Growing Together projects across the state, along with the help of more than 700 community members who were not Master Gardener volunteers, the association said. The projects also received the support of 442 youth.

Volunteers in the program plant donation gardens with partners, support their community with plant-a-row programs to get more produce into food pantries, and glean fresh produce from farmers markets and home gardeners. All extra produce is donated to local food pantries, food banks and other food distribution sites.

“We are excited to expand the project to new counties while supporting established community donation gardens throughout Iowa,” said Katie Sorrell, extension education specialist with ISU Extension and Outreach.

“This project provides fresh fruits and vegetables, often harvested that day, to food pantry clients throughout rural and urban Iowa counties,” Sorrel said.

The projects took on renewed importance in 2020 and 2021, with increased food insecurity and economic challenges across Iowa as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Master Gardeners take great pride in their Growing Together projects,” said Alicia Herzog, Master Gardener program coordinator with ISU Extension and Outreach.

“It’s encouraging to see growth, both in the garden and in the number of counties participating, because we know how impactful these contributions will be to local communities in need,” she said.

This year, the Growing Together Iowa team received a record number of applications, including from five new counties that have never received the mini-grant before.

In addition to Floyd County, other area county mini-grant recipients this year are:

• Mitchell County – Create a donation garden in Osage to benefit food pantry clients at the Osage Food Pantry and St. Ansgar Food Pantry. Local 4-H clubs will help build and maintain the garden and food pantry clients will be invited to participate in helping hours at the garden.
• Cerro Gordo County – Increase production with high yielding and easy-to-grow crops at donation gardens in Mason City and Clear Lake. Food pantry clients will be invited to helping hours at the garden and nutrition education classes taught by a food and health specialist.