UPMC program connects Pittsburgh-area farms, nonprofits to fight hunger and food waste
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, Americans waste 30% to 40% of their food every year. At the same time, one in seven people is facing food insecurity.
UPMC is working to be part of the solution in a sustainable way.
Drawings of fresh fruit and vegetables by sixth-generation farmer Liam Haffey show how, at a young age, he and the Haffey family knew the value of their locally grown food.
Their family owns and operates the Haffey Family Farm, based in Industry, Pennsylvania. Liam's mother, Kim, said locally grown farm food, like theirs, yields healthier ingredients with fewer chemicals.
"Our kids are in the fields with us. They go, they pick the kale, they pick the cucumber, they eat it right there," Kim Haffey said.
It's food that's directly feeding friends and neighbors.
"Everything is planted by hand, harvested by hand, brought to you by hand, and it's done with love. It's not a big commercial farm where it's picked by machine and then transported," she added.
Saving on transportation is only one piece of the sustainability puzzle.
"Sustainable growing means that, in the winter, we are planting cover crops. So that's adding nutrients back into the soil."
From local farms with clean soil, UPMC connects the puzzle pieces, so that fresh food is provided to those in need.
"Sustainability is taking care of our communities before they even have to end up in a hospital," said Sydney Crum, the program coordinator of UPMC's Center for Sustainability.
It's preemptive work, bringing together farmers, health care, and nonprofits fighting food insecurity under one roof for a sustainability fair.
"It's really amazing to see how far we have come from just three years ago to today," Crum said.
Nonprofits like 412 Food Rescue bring the work full circle.
"UPMC does a really amazing job of that. In the last three years, they've helped her recover 200,000 pounds of food and helped provide that to 71 different nonprofits in the area," said Becca Simmons, the dispatch operations manager for 412 Food Rescue.
They get food out to communities instead of into the landfill. That helps the environment, too.
"About 10% of our overall landfill emissions come from food waste," Simmons added.
All of the sustainability efforts collectively yield fewer emissions and less waste, while having more full bellies. It's a lesson in better health that UPMC teaches the next generation at the University of Pittsburgh.
"We have clinicians and physicians at UPMC that are involved in researching more sustainable health care practices at UPMC and at Pitt," said Lola Conti, the health and sciences project coordinator for the University of Pittsburgh Office of Sustainability.
From University of Pittsburgh students to young farmers, these UPMC partnerships paint a picture of a healthier, more eco-friendly, and resilient community.
"By supporting food security, working with local farms, and working with programs that help lower-income families have access to these foods, it's beneficial for everybody," said Kim Haffey.
This network of food sustainability includes many partnerships, such as Phipps Conservatory, Global Links, and others.
