WOW! Mobile Produce Pantry will be here Friday Oct 20th, 2017 from 10:00 am 'til 2:00 pm located at @Caring Hearts Foodbank Ministry in the parking lot of Amazing Grace Fellowship 4195 Lynn Drive, Fort Mohave, AZ (Hwy 95 & Valencia - behind Young Scholars School)

---> Come Early - Come Late, Put More Plants on Your Plate, we guarantee quality and value on the date. Choose fresh, seasonal Produce and assorted pantry items for free - WOW! <--- Are you interested in higher food value? Are you struggling with food insecurity? Difficulty managing your food budget for nutritious fruits and vegetables? This program has arrived to the Colorado River TriCities Region! UNRESTRICTED Access per each household to choose 30- 60lbs of assorted, imperfectly delicious produce and miscellaneous pantry items for free. WOW!! Now that's a deal. Donations are gratefully accepted but not required. WOW Mobile Produce Pantry is a 'Farmer's Market-style' unrestricted food distribution. The one difference from traditional mobile markets is we offer rescued produce and assorted pantry items - imperfectly delicious, blemished seconds that would be slated for a landfill. Be part of the affordable solution with unrestricted access that benefits the environment, and combats food insecurity, hunger and poverty throughout the River Valley Tristate. It is STRONGLY suggested that Supporters come prepared for inclement or extreme weather with hats or protective clothing, sun-screen, water and bring wheeled carts, dollies, wheelie coolers, wheelbarrows, bags or bins.....or a friend or youngster to help carry and collect the produce. Courtesy Cart service for those needing assistance and plenty of Boxes are available on site . FREE you say....Whatz the hitch?..... ---> You choose bulk quantities.
---> No Substitutions.
---> Maybe we only have limited 4-5 varieties with huge quantities of each....or maybe we have 10-12 varieties with less quantity offered of each item.
---> Produce Surprise! You won't know what is available ahead of time.
---> Maybe you don't like those items. (give to a friend)
---> Maybe it is difficult to get here early. (send a friend to pick-up)
---> Maybe you have to wait in line. (it's worth it!)
---> Maybe it is rainy, too hot or freezing weather. (come prepared or send your friend)

---> We may postpone an hour, but we NEVER cancel due to weather.....Rain-Shine-Cold-Heat the WOW Mobile Produce Pantry goes on!

Too much produce?....Pool your resources and share the produce with neighbors, friends, family, or someone who is in need. Pick-up for friends & family - There are no restrictions or qualifications to become a WOW Supporter. All are welcome!
(Special considerations are made for non-profit food & health programs to receive ‘After-Hours’ distributions.)

WOW Mobile Produce Pantry is distributed farmer's market style with a sign-in made at entry to the site. Supporters flow down the line and choose their own produce and miscellaneous pantry items. There are over 40 different varieties of food that are rescued throughout the season - both organic and conventional grown, fresh and packaged. The WOW Mobile Pantry distribution can have from 6-14 different produce items dependent solely on seasonal availability. Pantry items may include refrigerated, frozen, canned, packaged or fresh bread, etc... WOW Volunteers guide Supporters to how many of each item can be chosen per each household. Supporters select and choose the items they desire. Volunteers help to monitor and sort the produce as it is being distributed.

Non-Profit All Volunteer operated. Unrestricted, FREE access to bulk, fresh produce and miscellaneous pantry items. Heartfelt donations are gratefully accepted but not required. All proceeds benefit local non-profit food and nutrition Programs. View our produce and mobile pantry photos on this facebook page.

We would like a minimum of 400 households in attendance to make our site a successful monthly Mobile Pantry site.
TELL YOUR FRIENDS-NEIGHBORS-COWORKERS!!!! Anyone residing in the TriState or Visitors driving by - All are WELCOME. Anyone from anywhere in the TriState CA-AZ-NV region who Supports the market will be signed-in with their name and zip code. Provide your Email address to receive weekly email updates and WOW Mobile Pantry schedule. You do not have to be a resident of the immediate area to be a Supporter. Anyone who is interested in unrestricted, no-waste access to fresh, nutritious food is considered a Supporter.

We are always in need of: shade canopys/awnings and dedicated Volunteer crews to help us "pop-up" in the parking lot.
What could you contribute to this WOW Mobile Pantry event? Balloons? Volunteer Crew? Signage? Sponsorship? Advertising? Support?

At least 40 Volunteers are necessary to operate the site – the more the merrier! All proceeds – both donations & food, stays with the Host Agency @Caring Hearts Foodbank Ministry . Do you want to Volunteer your organization? Does your business want to be a Sponsor?

Please lettuce know your level of interest by clicking 'GOING' or 'INTERESTED', or contact Betty at Mojave Desert Nutrition & Lifestyle Initiative - Wellness... via telephone, make a comment below or send a private message.
Contact Betty Rae @ 928.758.7689

Mojave Desert Nutrition & Lifestyle Initiative - Wellness Studio and Caring Hearts Foodbank Ministry are honored and proud to partner with St. Mary's Foodbank Alliance as hosts of their innovative rescued food Mobile Pantry program. St. Mary's Foodbank Alliance is a 501(c)3 nonprofit community outreach based in Phoenix, AZ. They provide fresh produce, food supplies and other resources throughout the state.

WOW Mobile Produce Pantry distributes monthly year-round. The Mojave Desert Nutrition Initiative has worked diligently to bring this program to Bullhead City-Mohave County since June 2015. Keep posted for new sponsor-host locations throughout Mohave County.

DETAILS:
Billions of pounds of unwanted or rejected produce is simple thrown into landfills and wasted. A large portion of Produce received at Food Pantries, Food Banks and Food Ministries is "Ugly-Unwanted-Blemished-Oversized" or perfectly ripe n' ready to eat fruits n' veggies, that are deliciously tasty, nutritious, very edible and totally worthy to consume. Lettuce be part of the solution and provide our community with affordable, imperfectly delicious Produce.

Please watch, read or listen to the following segments to find out more about the abominable level of food waste in our country and how our involvement finds a solution to bring quality, nutritious, economical food to our local community.

---> Introduction to WOW Mobile Pantry https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQ_wVuuPrgt_0mhAbb1fEMRt2co-BapuN

Billions of pounds of produce come through the Mexico gates at Nogales, AZ and is often rejected. $4 billion worth of fruits and vegetables comes through the Nogales, Arizona border crossing. Most gets distributed to all parts of the U.S. and Canada, but some gets rejected before it leaves the city of Nogales. 'Rescued imperfectly delicious produce' gets a second life by redirecting it to needy families across the country and in Arizona. Much of this rejected or unwanted produce would be slated for the landfill if not for the generous donations from produce distributor warehouses.

St. Mary's Foodbank Alliance, Feeding America and their Volunteer-run crews and site locations, rescues 35 to 40 million pounds of edible Ugly, Unwanted, Blemished, Oversized, or Overstocked fruits and vegetables each year. Before these fruits and vegetables are sent to landfill, St. Mary's or Feeding America intercepts the products to try and give them a second chance to feed people in need.
“Some produce arrives spotted, or there’s scarring or black dots on the product, but it’s perfectly good,” . “By rescuing this poundage of produce we are able to move it to families who aren’t able to eat nutritiously.”

Distributing this rejected -- but perfectly safe -- produce is a massive undertaking. Currently, the foodbank receives between 30 to 40 million pounds of produce annually from distributor donors. Some of the produce is sorted; the majority is not, and all is left in its own packaging. Some of the remaining produce or pantry items are not saleable for cosmetic reasons, but is perfectly edible. The foodbank distributes food to hundreds of agencies, and to individual families throughout Arizona. There is No Waste! Inedible produce is used for animal feed, and 5% for compost. Even the cardboard is recycled. The remaining plastic or styrofoam packaging is classified as waste.

Questions? Concerns? Contact BETTY RAE
PH: 928.758.7689
Email: [email protected]
@WOW Mobile Produce Pantry
https://www.facebook.com/WOWproduceMarket
https://www.facebook.com/CaringHeartsFoodbank