Media Contact: Lorenzo Cuevas

E-mail: LC@weareufe.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Fresh Food Collaboration and Laveen School District partners with USDA to distribute 24,600 lbs. of fresh food to families in need during the coronavirus pandemic.

What: Distribution of Food Donation to Help Families in Need
When: Starting Monday, September 14, 2020 every second and fourth Monday, from 10 AM to 12 Noon MST
Where: Laveen School District

‍Press Availability:
Michael McMahon, Co-founder of Fresh Food Collaboration and Founder of Urban Farming Education
Cristobal Tino, President of Urban Farming Education

September 13, 2020 - Phoenix, AZ - As the global COVID-19 pandemic continues, food insecurity will continue to rise and affect Maricopa County's most vulnerable residents. Fresh Food Collaboration is working in cooperation with St. Mary's Food Bank and the Laveen School District to identify and serve those in need.

Since April 2020, Fresh Food Collaboration has already donated over 140,000 pound of produce. Urban Farming Education and Green Living Magazine volunteers will assemble, sort, and pack produces. Urban Farming Education provides transportation of the food boxes, and Agave Farms will provide the space to assemble, sort, and pack the produce.
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Today, September 13, 2020, over 800 boxes have been prepared for distribution, each containing 30 pound of fresh produce, including apples, potatoes, celery, lettuce, and various vegetables. Each box will also contain free resources provided by First Things First. The local catering company, Amici Catering, shares quick and healthy after school snacks that kids can make on their own.

Families will be able to pick up a 30 pound box per household. The box of produce can be picked up on Monday, September 14, 2020 at the following times and locations:

Trailside Point (7275 W. Vineyard Rd Laveen, Arizona 85339)
Paseo Pointe (8800 S. 55th, Arizona 85339)
Laveen Elementary (4141 W. McNeil St., Arizona 85339)
Rogers Ranch School (6735 S. 47th Ave., Arizona 85339)‍

The food distribution is a bi-monthly drive-thru. This collaboration with Laveen School District is to meet the growing community need for food security resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

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About Fresh Food Collaboration
Mike McMahon, founder of Agave Farms and Urban Farming Education, and Dorie Morales, publisher of Green Living Magazine, have joined forces to create Fresh Food Collaboration —an initiative that works to redirect surplus food to those in need, with the goal of changing the narrative surrounding food scarcity. Fresh Food Collaboration is registered as an agency through St. Mary’s Food Bank, which allows the collaborators team to supplement produce donations and ultimately maintain a bigger reach in the Valley.
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In the midst of a global pandemic, Fresh Food Collaboration’s founders felt more compelled than ever to facilitate food drives and meal donation efforts that could support some of the state’s most vulnerable communities and families. Throughout the year, the volunteer-driven initiative has worked to host semi-regular events, with each one feeding over 500 families through the distribution of over 20,000 pounds of food. The farm fresh boxes feature everything from fruits and vegetables, to fresh bread and other organic treats. Outside of the famed donation drives hosted at Agave Farms and a number of local schools and churches, the team has also worked with partners like Witnessing Nature in Food and Amici Catering to supply hot meals to nonprofits and shelters around the Valley.
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The agency of founders and event sponsors share a common thread throughout each of their brands: they’re not only environmentally conscious, they’re also driven to educate and inspire people about nutritious foods, conscious living, and the benefits of urban farming education.

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