Longmont Food Rescue hosts Produce in the Park on Sunday

Longmont Food Rescue began in 2017 when locals decided to rescue the food that was being thrown out from food retailers and farms and give it to people experiencing food insecurity. In addition to saving food, the organization hosts several Produce in the Park events to distribute groceries to all in need, with no questions asked.

On Sunday, the nonprofit will set up in the YMCA parking lot, located at 950 Lashley St, at noon. The event is a drive-up model where Longmont Food Rescue volunteers place a pre-packed bag of food in the participant’s car.

How much food a participant get depends on the number of people they are feeding according to Naomi Curland, executive director of Longmont Food Rescue. Volunteers fill bags with “an equitable amount of food based on their household size,” she said. 

“We aim to give each household at least one bag of produce and one bag of mixed deli and dry goods, but we often run out of certain food types before we reach the final vehicle. We do our best to provide some food to each household if possible,” Curland said. 

Longmont Food Rescue holds Produce in the Park events twice a month, on the second and fourth Sundays. The second Sunday is at the YMCA and the fourth Sunday is held at Collyer Park, 600 Collyer St.  

The Collyer Park event is a walk-up self-service model, according to Curland. At this event, patrons can line up in the park and can fill one standard-sized grocery bag per household. Patrons are allowed to return to the back of the line and go through again, until all of the food is gone. 

In the summer, between July and September, the nonprofit hosts a popup farm produce stand in the parking lot at Longmont United Hospital, 1950 Mountain View Ave. 

Many families are still experiencing the long-term impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic, Curland said. That coupled with inflation that has driven food prices higher has resulted in a 27% increase in families who visit the Produce in the Parks events, according to Curland. 

The nonprofit aspires to host more food distribution sites throughout town, however, it lacks additional food donations. 

“We are always exploring opportunities for new donor relationships to be able to support more food distributions,” Curland said. 

As a way to fill in some of the gaps between distribution days, Longmont Food Rescue operates Longmont Community Fridges at three Longmont locations, Aspen Safe Haven at 10656 Park Ridge Ave., Heart of Longmont at 350 11th Ave. and Longmont United Hospital.

“We invite people who want to support our fridges to buy an extra bag of groceries the next time they're shopping and stop by our fridges on their way home to help provide a meal for their neighbors,” Curland said.