Farm To Freezer Expanding Program For 2013

Farm to Freezer, photo via TEDxManhattanFarm to Freezer, a for-profit social enterprise that got its start last year preparing and donating frozen food leftovers to homeless people in Bethesda, is relaunching this weekend with an expanded program.

Cheryl Kollin, who started the program last summer in Bethesda, is looking for kitchen volunteers on Saturday and Sunday to help take surplus produce from local farmers markets and convert it into tomato sauce and ratatouille and freeze it for storage.

This year, Farm to Freezer will work out of the Woodside United Methodist Church in Silver Spring (8900 Georgia Ave.), but it will partner up with Bethesda’s Central Farm Market to buy excess produce from vendors and sell its mixed vegetable products.

Last year, the food was prepared for homeless clients of Bethesda Cares to eat in the winter. This year, Farm to Freezer will collaborate with Manna Food Center, the county’s food bank, to serve 3,300 clients and 50 partner feeding programs.

Kollin made a TEDx presentation on the program in February. After it was announced the FRESHFARM Saturday farmer’s market in Woodmont Triangle would not return this year, Kollin got to work putting together an expanded program. Farm to Freezer volunteers used food from FRESHFARM last year.

For more information on the program, visit the website. To sign up to volunteer in the kitchen this weekend or this summer, visit the calendar.

Photo via Farm to Freezer

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