Maine Harvest for Hunger

UMaine Extension Gleaning Handbook

Eight Steps to Gleaning Success

Adapted by Lynne Holland and Frank Wertheim, with permission from the Merrymeeting Food Council, the Androscoggin Gleaners, the York County Master Gardener Gleaners, and various gleaners over the years.

When you open a linked Google Doc or Google Sheet on this page or on the landing page of this handbook, you’ll have Viewer access, which means you can read the file but not edit it online. If you’d like to use the file yourself, you can easily download a copy:

  • Open the Google Doc or Sheet using the link provided.
  • In the top menu, click File.
  • Hover over Download.
  • Choose the file format you prefer (for example, Microsoft Word, Excel, or PDF).
  • The file will download to your computer, where you can open it and make your own edits.

This allows you to work with the document or spreadsheet without changing the original file.

Simplicity is the hallmark of all successful programs. Doing things once can be called luck. Repeating that success and scaling it up takes planning.  Gleaning is a process that depends heavily on relationships and trust. All participants will have more confidence in the program if the process is dependable and holds few surprises.  Farming is subject to many unknowns. Working with volunteers is less certain than working with paid employees. Pantries and meal sites are often at the mercy of inconsistent funding and other resources.  Solid relationships can be the constant that the process can rely on for success.

The University of Maine Harvest for Hunger team has worked with various gleaning groups and has been instrumental in the formation of several in the state. These steps to success are an adaptation of what has been learned over the years.

  • Contact the farmer to ask what time (and which day) is good for volunteers to glean and what food he has available
    • “Hi Nate, we’re hoping to come out again this Wednesday. What time works for you, and what do you think we’ll be gleaning?”
    • “Good Morning, Tina, how are the berries this week?  Will the Pick-your-Own be closing soon?”
  • A farmer may prefer texting or email for communication, but all methods of communication should be noted with the farm address and contact name.
  • Maintain a Farmer Contact Form (Google Sheet)
  • Create a list of local Food Banks, Pantries, Congregate Meal Sites, Shelters, etc.
  • Email/text pantries and kitchens, letting them know what might be available, but make sure they know that there is no guarantee about what will be available.
  • Keep in mind the driving distance when offering up donations. If you’re not willing or able to drive to them, it might not be a good idea to offer up donations.
  • Ask if they can pick up at a central location, or if they need it to be delivered (what time?).
  • Set up pick-up/drop-off locations.
  • Keep an updated list of pantries and who you’ve contacted.
  • Two Examples of Pantry Contact Information.

Example 1:

Hi all, 

I will be gleaning fresh produce from Six River Farm in Bowdoinham tomorrow. 

This week, we have spinach, bok choy, lettuce, and broccoli all available​ to us. We will be gleaning tomorrow morning from 9:00-10:00 a.m. and would like the vegetables to go into cold storage as soon as possible. 

If you have any interest in getting some of this amazing farm-fresh food for your pantries/soup kitchens, let me know how many banana boxes you would like me to drop off or for you to pick up – please specify which kinds of food you do or do not want.

Note: We cannot guarantee the quantity or type of produce we are offering.

If you would like to be taken off this list, or if there is someone else at your pantry who would be a better person to contact, please let me know that as well.

I hope to hear from many of you today! You can reach me at smccabe@bowdoin.edu or 617.347.9633 until 4:00 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Example 2:

Hi all,

We will be gleaning again tomorrow at Six River Farm. Nate the farmer did not specify what kinds of produce would be available.

We will be done gleaning around 10:00 a.m., and we will plan to drop off food within the hour. If you can pick up at Six River Farm instead, that would be very helpful!

Please let me know if tomorrow is not a good day for you, or if you have limited space for donations.

I hope to hear from many of you today! You can reach me at smccabe@bowdoin.edu or 617.347.9633 until 4:00 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Once they reply with their preferences, you can arrange pick-up at central locations or drop-off times at the specific pantries. Make sure to get cell phone numbers, in case you run into problems with delivery.

  • Reply to pantries to confirm what they are interested in receiving, and get contact information for someone to call if there are any problems.
  • Contact any pantries that will not be getting a regular delivery.
  • Make sure volunteers have waivers signed
  • Have copies of Emergency Contacts
  • Have a delivery list and any special instructions.
  • Bring a first aid kit, banana boxes, garden knives, and damp cloths
  • Put damp cloths on greens to keep them from drying out; try to keep food in the shade
  • Take pictures!
  • Tare out totes and boxes in advance for accurate weights

Step-by-Step: Taring a Container

  • Place the empty container on the scale.
  • Press the TARE button.
  • The display resets to 0.00, even though the container is still on the platform.
  • Add your product to the container.
  • The scale now shows only the net weight of the contents.
  • Weigh food as it is picked and divided
  • It’s okay to estimate the weight of one box, but it’s better to weigh each one if you can
  • Record weight by category of food
  • Note how much of each item went to each destination

  • Keep track of the following information:
    • Where the gleaning happened
    • What was gleaned (what kind of food)
    • The weight of each kind of food
    • The number of banana boxes/totes of each kind of food
    • Which volunteers gleaned and for how long
    • If there were any drivers or other volunteers helping
    • Where the food was delivered
  • You can keep track of all of this information on a spreadsheet:
  • Gleaning Tracking using a Google Form:

Appendix

Adapted by Lynne Holland and Frank Wertheim, with permission from the Merrymeeting Food Council, the Androscoggin Gleaners, the York County Master Gardener Gleaners, and various gleaners over the years.

Questions?

For more information about Harvest for Hunger, contact your local county Extension office or complete and submit our contact form.

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