Attention Bounty & Soul Family: please take a moment to read this message. We want to be transparent about where we are at organizationally, and about changes you can anticipate as we enter a challenging winter season. The coming cold, the shifts of the supply chain and present inflation pressure will likely alter the way we operate over the next few months, but will never bring our community down. It’s important that we are open about the struggles we are facing both here locally and regionally as well as on a national and global level. Please read on, be informed, and know that we are dedicated to creating innovative solutions to continue bringing Produce to the People.
Dear Bounty & Soul Family,
I hope you’ve been taking time to soak in the gorgeous fall colors in our mountain home, and that their beauty has fed your soul. Every fall season is stunning, but somehow this year has seemed particularly vibrant, which is a reminder that Nature is always giving, responsive, and selfless.
This is an important letter to all community members to share some changes in food availability, not only for Bounty & Soul, but for our entire region.
Currently, participation in our Produce to the People™ markets and Benevolent Box™ delivery is about 280% of our pre-COVID levels. However, the amount of food being donated to us from grocery stores and MANNA FoodBank has decreased by about 45%. In short, we’re serving almost triple the number of people with nearly half the food we once had.
This year because of some successful grant writing, we’ve had more money to purchase more food from local farms, which has bridged some of the gap in donated food. That’s been a real blessing! But as we come to the close of this year’s harvest season, we can see that the overall trend is toward less food, until system-wide changes take place.
We ask you to understand that the amount of food we share with our community will fluctuate from week to week, especially during the winter months and into early spring. Also, you may find us sharing foods that we normally don’t share, to make up for lesser amounts of food at times.
The decrease in food quantity has happened due to many factors. Grocery stores have reduced their ordering in response to supply chain issues, climate change, and recent inflation. It costs grocers more to purchase food, so they are motivated to waste less. This has resulted in less food donations to Bounty & Soul, food pantries, and to MANNA FoodBank.
Farmers are experiencing increased food production and transport costs while at the same time encountering a labor shortage. This is impacting how much farmers can grow. The trucking industry is also in a labor shortage combined with high diesel costs, which also impacts food supply and food cost.
We want you to know though at Bounty & Soul, with our community and partners, we always prevail! Please continue to come to our community markets. We will have food, connectivity, and education to share. We genuinely love you and want you to know that we are in this together. Our team of staff and volunteers is strong, and we are committed to your health and wellbeing and that of the community. We will create new solutions, secure grants, and form partnerships and collaborations, as we always have, to bring our Bounty & Soul family what we all need.
Together, we connect, share, and celebrate nutritious food, education, and community. YOU are our family.
With Love,
The Bounty & Soul Team