JESSAMINE COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — A local program in Jessamine County is working to address two significant challenges: food insecurity and food waste through a simple but effective donation system.
One in five children and one in six adults experience food insecurity in Kentucky, while approximately 130 billion pounds of food is wasted each year across the nation, according to the University of Kentucky.
"The idea is that we are trying to get these food insecure individuals more nutritious foods and also along the lines of reducing food waste and loss," said Dawn Brewer, principal investigator of the WiN-WiN Program and a College of Dietetics and Nutrition professor.
The "Waste Not Want Not" program, also known as "WIN-WIN," was created at the University of Kentucky's Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition. It currently focuses on Jessamine County, where program directors say a little more than 10% of the population experiences food insecurity.
The program collects donated fresh produce from community sources including home gardeners, farmers, and anyone with extra produce that would otherwise go to waste.
"It was through talking with different farmers that it was recommended that we should look at home gardeners that they tend to have excess in this county," said Brewer.
People in the community can bring their fresh produce to seven different drop-off locations in Jessamine County.
"Manna Meals," a soup kitchen in Nicholasville, serves as one of the produce drop-off locations and creates nutritious meals with the rescued food.
"We have people who can't afford to buy fresh produce, who can't afford to cook it, we have a different chef every week with manna meals. They love experimenting with the produce that we're getting," said Pamela Rosenthal, a director for Manna Meals.
The program also works with local farmers, including Clover Hilltop Farm, and the Wilmore and Nicholasville farmers markets to rescue produce.
"As a vendor, it's been a huge blessing, because with the abundant rain, we had more produce than we planned for," said Clover Hilltop Farms owner Diane Vetters, who is also a board member of both the Nicholasville and Wilmore Farmers Markets.
WiN-WiN program directors hope to expand the program to other counties.
Here's where you can drop off produce:
JC Food Pantry: 104 S. 2nd St Suite A, Mondays 8 a.m. -11 a.m.
St. Luke Catholic Church: 304 S. Main St, Tuesday 7 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Bethel Harvest: 3260 Lexington Road, Thursday 1 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Fitch's IGA: 102 E Main St., Wilmore, Thursday and Friday 9 a.m. -7 p.m.
Manna Meals: 303 W Maple St, Saturday 10 a.m. -1 p.m.
Nicholasville Farmers Market: 210 E Walnut St, Saturday 8 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Wilmore Farmers Market: Main St, Saturday 8 a.m. - 12 p.m.
