While food insecurity focuses on whether enough food is available, nutrition insecurity also considers the quality and variety of food people can obtain. Individuals and families experiencing nutrition insecurity may have enough calories to eat, but not enough consistent access to the nutrient-rich foods (like fruits and vegetables) needed for good health.

CFS focuses on nutrition security to address the health and food insecurity challenges that historically marginalized communities face. To learn more about our work, click here.

Food is Medicine programs, including Produce Prescriptions (PRx), have become increasingly powerful and cost-effective interventions to address diet-related chronic conditions and health disparities, in addition to improving household nutrition security for positive long-term outcomes.

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s Food is Medicine work, click here.

Farm to School programs aim to change the relationship children have with food by connecting schools with local farms and farm produce. These programs can serve as a meaningful food access intervention for low-income students who may have less exposure to fresh produce outside of school. 

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s Farm to School work, click here.

We recognize that our fellow food assistance providers (FAPs) can face challenges in accessing local, nutrient-dense food. We leverage our aggregation and cold storage infrastructure to connect FAPs and small farms in an easy, streamlined process – so as many people as possible have access to nutrient-dense, locally grown produce!

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s work in this space, click here.

Effectively increasing access to healthy foods involves addressing two main barriers: physical access and financial access.

• We address physical access by bringing produce to our families through our Mobile Farm Markets. We intentionally locate the markets at schools and community locations in High Food Priority Areas (HFPAs). Most of our program participants are within 10 minutes of our market locations. For those unable to attend our markets, we deliver freshly packed produce bags to their homes.

• Additionally, our families can shop at ANY of our markets! We see in the data that many of our families shop at various Mobile Farm Markets throughout the month – so as they travel around the county for work, childcare, and errands, they can stop by one of our markets any time that works for their schedule. 

• We address financial access by securing philanthropic funding for the produce at our Mobile Farm Markets. Our program participants shop for produce using prepaid cards, while the greater community receives a discount on all produce. Additionally,  community members are able to use SNAP and SUN Bucks, both of which are matched by Maryland Market Money up to $20.

Small farms are the heart of healthy communities and the core of sustainable food systems, but are often faced with systemic challenges. 

To learn more about how Community FarmShare partners with local farms to build a thriving, equitable, connected food system, click here.

Food aggregation is the process of collecting small amounts of produce from multiple small and medium-sized farms into a single, centralized location. It creates a consistent, larger supply of food to meet needs at a larger scale. 
Cold storage plays a crucial role in preserving the quality and safety of harvested produce. However, cold storage is often prohibitively expensive in equipment, maintenance, and energy costs.

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s aggregation and cold storage services, click here.

Contract purchasing from farms is an agreement between a farmer and a buyer made before the crop is harvested. The buyer agrees to purchase agreed quantities of produce at a predetermined price, while the farmer commits to growing it. Our market data enables us to use community demand to drive food production and contract-purchase the crops we need for the upcoming market season.

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s contract purchasing work, click here.

An effective regional food system creates the conditions in which food hubs of all sizes are able to coordinate to address each of the hubs’ ever-changing supply and demand needs. 

To learn more about regional food hub integration, click here.

By partnering with various community organizations on healthy food access programs (Food is Medicine, Farm to School, and wholesale for other FAPs), we make more local produce available through a demand-driven model, increasing demand for the high-quality, nutrient-dense food that nourishes our communities and sustains our local farms!

CFS is always seeking buyers to increase the amount of local produce getting to communities through all of our channels. Our work increasing sustainable demand among food assistance providers (FAPs) and other partners helps improve the triple bottom line of supporting local farms – local farm sustainability, improved health and food equity, and environmental stewardship/climate change mitigation – which benefits all of us.

Our free-choice “farmers markets on wheels” and produce bag home deliveries bring fresh, local produce directly to communities! We serve High Food Priority Areas (HFPAs) across Montgomery County to increase equitable access to fresh fruits and vegetables in communities that historically have had little to no convenient access to affordable healthy food options.

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s Mobile Farm Markets and produce bags, click here.

Our wholesale operation enables small and medium institutions (like food pantries) to purchase local produce in bulk. Oftentimes our wholesale clients purchase from us to stock their free-choice pantries or pack bags for home or school delivery.

To learn more about Community FarmShare’s wholesale work, click here.