At the end of the 2012 Bloomington Winter Farmers’ Market season, vendors and board members discussed how to make local, healthful food more available to low income households in the winter and at the same time, help farmers who take on the additional expense and risk of growing crops in the winter. This discussion was the origin of our program, which is now 10 years old. Farm to Family Fund has grown over the years and now purchases food year-round from vendors at several markets.
At the close of the Bloomington farmers’ markets, we purchase produce, eggs, and dairy that farmers wish to sell at half price. This food is donated to The Rise, the Community Kitchen of Monroe County, Hoosier Hills Food Bank, Pantry 279, and Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard.
Farm to Family Fund also supports SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) matching at the Bloomington Winter Farmers’ Market and Bloomington Farm Stop Collective. We have recently received funding from the Community Foundation of Bloomington and Monroe County to purchase local food for meals served at Beacon’s Shalom Community Center.
Our Board
The Farm to Family Fund, Inc., board is made up of Deborah Piston-Hatlen, Stephanie Smith, Bobbi Boos, Marjorie DeBruyne, Libby Gwynn, Keenan May, Dan Taylor, and Anne Veldman.
Learn more about Farm to Family
- Read the October 2021 article in the Herald-Times
- See the Farm to Family Fund Annual Reports for 2016-17, 2017-18
- On March 2, 2018, Farm to Family was featured on Earth Eats, a local program on WFIU, Bloomington’s NPR affiliate. Our story begins at the 11:45 mark in the program
- Read more about Farm to Family (formerly Healthful Food for All Fund) and Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard: Thanks to The Healthful Food for All Fund, Mondays are looking good in the Hub Food Pantry. Our produce table is piled high with the freshest most …