HARVEST SEASON KICK OFF:
Celebrating Backyard Bounty Week
We kicked off our busy winter harvest season with Backyard Bounty Week, a week of events, volunteer opportunities and gleaning. We kicked things off at the Table of Life event where we got to share information with guests about what we do. We also hosted a Backyard Bounty Info Session at the Santa Maria warehouse and talked to new volunteers about outreach. On Thursday we joined CAC’s Food Day event at Backdoor Deli to talk about fresh healthy food and volunteering.

We ended the week with a Fresh Food Drive at the Santa Barbra Farmers Market where we met tons of new people and gathered over 560 lbs of fresh, healthy produce and donated it directly to Salvation Army. We were joined by our friends from California Rare Fruit Growers Association and Mesa Harmony Garden who answered questions about growing fruit. It was such a pleasure talking to gardeners, shoppers, folks interested in volunteering and some of our amazing local farmers. Can’t wait to do it again!
EXCITING NEWS:
Harvest season is here… Registration is Open!
SIGN UP NOW for our biggest harvest of the year. Each November one of our generous donors allows us to harvest 3 acres of mandarins in Goleta. These lovely little fruit get distributed to our programs and partners throughout the county and are the featured fruit at our Kids Farmers Markets. We have a huge crop to harvest before El Nino arrives and we need YOUR HELP!

We have a HUGE crop this year and need your help harvesting!

Visit our Glean Calendar to register to volunteer with us ASAP because these spots fill up fast. Get your family together to come lend a hand or sign up your businesses for a day of giving! Gleaning is a great way to give back in an impactful way so gather a team of coworkers or friends for a few hours of healthy exercise in a beautiful citrus orchard. Kids are welcome with parental supervision. Please note that we are at the mercy of weather and will have alternate dates should we encounter rain. Feel free to email us with any questions!

Thank a Farmer
Not only are farmers some of the hardest working folks we know but they’re generous to boot! We collected 561 lbs of BEAUTIFUL produce last Saturday at the Santa Barbara Farmers Market. Big thanks goes to:
Earth Trine Farms, De La Cruz Farm, Tom Shepard, Fair Hills Farms, Lane Farms, Hill Top Canyon, Tamai Farm, Garcia Farm, McGrath, Burkdoll Farm, Roots Farm, Garden Of….., Mud Creek Ranch, Ellwood Canyon Farms, Rudy Domingo, Peacock Farms and, last but not least, Milliken Family Farms!

Backyard Bounty Hunter Info Session
Did you know that Backyard Bounty is a volunteer powered program? That means that we depend on people like you to help us connect with new donors, scout new sites and harvest fruit. On Wednesday November 4th we will be hosting a Backyard Bounty Info Session where you can find out how to help us keep good food from going to waste. Backyard Bounty are first in line for small neighborhood harvests and will have opportunities to learn more about fruit tree care, disease identificationand pruning.

WANTED:
Farmers
Market Crew Leader

We are very lucky to have so many local farmers who are happy to donate their market surplus to those in needs. We need the help of a few volunteers who are willing to lend a hand on Saturdays to collect and weigh donations. Would you like to have another great reason to be at the Farmers Market every weekend AND help make sure that everybody in our community has access to fresh produce? We need folks who can commit to two Saturdays a month from approximately 11am-2pm. Training provided.
Email backyardbounty
@foodbanksbc.org for more info. Please note if you’re California ID and ability to drive Foodbank vehicle.

Want to get involved?
Register to volunteer:http://www.backyardbounty.org/volunteer.php
Sign up for a harvest: http://www.backyardbounty.org/gleanlist.php
Like us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/backyardbountyprogram
Follow us on Instagram: www.instagram.com/backyardbountysbc