Greene County Food Security Coalition is a network of food pantries, feeding agencies, local food producers, volunteers and community members such as (left to right) Charlotte Carter, Jonathan Gross, Isabella Kemp and Barbara Swanson.
By Michael Ryan
MOUNTAINTOP - Smiling and saying “cheese” for the camera is one thing, but finding a way to disseminate 24,000 pounds of coagulated casein in a hurry was quite another for the Greene County Food Security Coalition.
“It was astonishing,” says Jonathan Gross, a founding member of the Coalition, a network of food pantries, feeding agencies, local food producers, devoted volunteers and community members.
They are collectively, “dedicated to ensuring that every member of our community has access to healthy, nutritious food,“ their website states.
“Two-and-a-half years ago, Greene County food pantries were struggling with unprecedented increases in both community need and costs of food,” Gross said in a recent interview.
“Many of the pantries were working independently. In response to funding cuts and increased demand, a group of us recognized the need to share resources, improve communication and work cooperatively,” Gross said.
“We were approached by a woman who did this internationally. We set up a platform to talk to each other and all of a sudden it was working.
“That was the original model and we’re continuing to grow,” Gross said, noting the Coalition was officially formed in 2023.
It currently Includes multiple Greene County member pantries plus Feed HV, a nonprofit feeding agency, the Coalition website states.
“Our initial focus was on developing partnerships will local farmers, producers and agribusinesses,” the website states.
“We have established a “Field to Pantry” program, encouraging hunters to donate deer for processing by the Berkshire Hills Farm.
That effort, “doubled the amount of venison distributed to food pantries,” the website states. “ In 2024, Feed HV provided funding to purchase vegetables from Black Horse Farm.
“This year, Feed HV funding will be used for group purchases of milk, meat and vegetables,” the website states.
And speaking of milk, the Coalition had to - and did- rise to the occasion when a fortuitous call came in from a local creamery.
“Hudson Creamery told us they had overproduced some goat cheese,” Gross said. “It’s a high source of protein so we were interested.
“We asked, ‘how much you got?’ They told us twelve tons. I swear to you, twelve tons,” Gross says, still incredulous at the preponderance.
“That’s a whole lot of cheese but we love the challenge and fortunately, we’re capable of mobilizing very quickly,” Gross said.
“The cheese was individually wrapped, if you can believe it. We gathered cars and pickup trucks and some local pantries had box trucks.
“We placed eight tons in a week-and-a-half, and then we found the Platte Clove community in Hunter where we were able to store a couple of tons.
“Lime Kiln Farm [in West Coxsackie] took a ton or so and the Hensonville Fire Department stored some, allowing us more time,” Gross said.
“We still had some left over so we decided to give it to ambulance workers, fire departments and even the county sheriff’s office.
“It was absolutely amazing. We even went to surrounding counties. It became a love fest of sharing,” Gross said.
Coalition literature states, “many of us expect to see further increases in food insecurity. Our networking and collaborative approach to sharing resources and developing partnerships with local farmers and food producers seems particularly timely as a strategy to address food insecurity.
“We are asking for support from our communities and elected officials to help build our network,” the Coalition states, listing contact info: Chris Braccia, cbraccia@hvadc.org (518) 223-9727, Charlotte Carter. coxsackieareafoodpantry@gmail.com and Jonathan Gross. jonathangross25@gmail.com (914) 523 3766.
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