Giving It Away: Growing Produce You Can Take to the (Food) Bank

Sharing your garden’s surplus with your local food bank is great way to ensure that people in need in your community have access to fresh, nutritious produce. Maybe you have had interest in donating your excess harvest or deliberately growing extra to give away but weren’t sure how to or what guidelines there might be or what to plant. Klamath-Lake Food Bank director Niki Sampson will lead a panel discussion with gardeners who support their communities in this meaningful way, so you can learn how to take food banks into account when gardening.

Presenter: Niki Sampson has been with the Klamath-Lake Counties Food Bank for 28 years and is currently serving as its executive director. Their mission is to supply food and non-food products to programs that provide for those who struggle with food insecurity. Almost three decades ago, the program served about 10–12 nonprofits; today, that number is nearly 100. In 2023, they distributed 2.6 million pounds of food, including 400,000 pounds of fresh produce.

About Growing Oregon Gardeners: Level Up Series

The cost of food keeps climbing. One in five people faces hunger in Oregon. And the pandemic showed us the fragility of our supply system. Growing our own food—for us, for our families, for our neighbors—is an action gardeners can take to strengthen food security in our local communities. This year's Growing Oregon Gardeners: Level Up series is aimed at helping gardeners take a bite out of hunger. The closed-captioned webinars will be broadcast via Zoom and streamed via our Facebook page on the second Tuesday of the month, at noon, February through October 2024. This series is open to the public, and OSU Extension Master Gardener volunteers receive 1 Continuing Education Credit for each class. You can take one, or take all. This webinar is being recorded and will be available to view on our website within two weeks of airdate.