Food Rescue in Action: Feeding San Diego and ProduceGood Rescue 2,000 Pounds of Citrus in Rancho Santa Fe

Published On: July 27th, 2021By Categories: Partnerships1.9 min read

This past Sunday, July 25, over 25 volunteers gathered at a private residence in Rancho Santa Fe, a region of San Diego County best known for its large estates and country lifestyle. Common sightings include people on horseback and homeowners’ many fruit trees, both beautiful sights to see only 20 minutes or so from downtown San Diego. In two short hours, the group of volunteers gleaned almost 2,000 pounds of Valencia oranges from Jim and Sarah Sleeper’s grove of more than 100 trees to help fight hunger across San Diego County.

How Residential Harvests Work

Orange trees at Sleeper farm

This week, the local produce from this effort is going back out into the community through Feeding San Diego’s wide distribution network. What happened on Sunday is a residential harvest, and it’s just one way that Feeding San Diego is using food rescue to combat hunger throughout San Diego County. In partnership with local non-profit ProduceGood, a non-profit that engages local volunteers to harvest excess produce in backyards, on farms, and at farmers markets, Feeding San Diego is able to get fresh, local produce out into the community.

“Our partnership with ProduceGood is one of over 320 that enable our organization to both reduce food waste and feed those in our community facing hunger,” explains Patty O’Connor, Chief Supply Officer at Feeding San Diego. “ProduceGood’s focus on recovering fresh produce already growing within our county is inspiring, and our partnership allows us to continue to provide healthy food to those in need of food assistance.”

Feed, Rescue, Unite

It’s a full-circle partnership that exemplifies Feeding San Diego’s three primary actions: Feed, Rescue, Unite. By uniting with ProduceGood, whose volunteers on Sunday were all employees of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), Feeding San Diego can both rescue food and feed the community.

Bin of fresh oranges

“ProduceGood has provided Feeding San Diego with almost 200,000 pounds of citrus since 2016,” shares said Kait Cole, Community Orchard Lead at ProduceGood. “This fruitful collaboration provides the food insecure of San Diego with thousands of servings of nutrient-rich citrus.”

To learn more about how to donate food to Feeding San Diego, click here.