Health & Fitness
Food for Others: Harvest for the Hungry
Harvesting food for Food for Others is another way to volunteer your time and to provide healthful, fresh produce to local families who need our help.
The Harvest for the Hungry Project is a special program that allows Food for Others volunteers to harvest crops at the USDA Agricultural Research Center's 3,000-acre farm in Beltsville, Maryland.
At the USDA Beltsville Agricultural Research Farm, most of the produce is NOT sprayed with pesticides or herbicides, making it nearly organic. We never pick experimental or genetically engineered produce. Detailed directions will be given to you when you register.
All the food harvested by FFO teams goes to the Food for Others warehouse in Merrifield for distribution to needy families in Northern Virginia. This harvesting activity provides community groups, churches, schools, and individuals an opportunity to help our neighbors in need. This is a great way to work with friends or co-workers on a project that makes a difference right away. It's good exercise too!
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There is no age limit for participants, but young children must be supervised by responsible adults. This project is truly a fun, educational experience and a worthwhile community-service project. Community Service forms can be signed by FFO staff. Bring them to the harvest!
This year FFO teams will be out in the fields on 16 different days, from 9:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
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2012 Harvesting Schedule
Wednesday, July 25
Wednesday, August 1
Wednesday, August 8
Sunday, August 12
Wednesday, August 15
Wednesday, August 29
Wednesday, September 5
Wednesday, September 12
Sunday, September 16
Wednesday, September 19
Wednesday, September 26
Wednesday, October 3
Wednesday, October 10
Sunday, October 14
Wednesday, October 17
Wednesday, October 24
How to Register
You must be registered to harvest. To register for one of the dates below please send an email to: harvest@foodforothers.org
The email MUST include the following:
- First and Second choice of dates. We will do everything possible to give you your first choice.
- Contact Name
- Contact Email Address
- Contact Phone Number
- Number of volunteers in your group (space limited to 100 harvesters per day.)
After registration you will receive an email confirmation with detailed instructions and a waiver form that MUST be filled out by each participant and turned in on the day of the harvest.
One more very important thing…
As a special added benefit to participating in the harvests, Food for Others is able to designate all of these dates as Help the Homeless events as well. Help the
Homeless is sponsored by Fannie Mae and is now in its 25th year serving
the homeless and those at risk of becoming homeless. As part of your harvesting-confirmation email, you will also receive a participation application that can be turned in on the day you work or (preferably) completed online. If Food for Others reaches the golden number of 4,000 participants, we will receive a bonus of $50,000 from Fannie Mae! Your registration will help us reach our goal.
For all information about donating or volunteering for Food for Others, call Nikki Clifford at 703-207-9173, or you may go to www.foodforothers.org.
