Five Loaves Farm’s Unique Niche

The Five Loaves Farm is now in full production. The entire 3 acres are planted out with veggies ranging from Anaheim Peppers to Zucchinis. May found us giving away 2500 lbs. of produce and June a little over 1700 lbs. From late July through September we should see a doubling of these quantities. It’s a beautiful sight to behold and it is uniquely filling real needs in our community!

We are now the only regular supplier of first-rate quality fresh produce, grown according to organic standards, to some of the poorest communities in Santa Barbara. We continue to distribute food through the Santa Barbara Community Development Center in Isla Vista on a weekly basis. Due to our increase in productivity we have expanded our distribution through Food Bank of Santa Barbara. This ensures that the food gets to people in need around our community. Organizations that currently use our produce include the Organic Soup Kitchen (healthy meals for the homeless, transition house, and pregnant moms), Food From the Heart (providing meals for hospice and the critically ill), and St. Vincent’s (meals for single moms and their children). In addition we have begun distributing produce through Querencia’s Eastside Kids’ Club and hope to begin distribution through Garden Court a retirement home for the elderly poor of Santa Barbara.

There are numerous families in Santa Barbara that live at or below the federally defined poverty level. That number is effectively larger when one considers the high cost of living in our area. One of the greatest needs in the culture of poverty is for healthy food. Most poor families can receive food from local distribution agencies like the ones Santa Barbara A Rocha has partnered with, but without the produce grown at Five Loaves Farm most of these agencies are limited to offering primarily non-perishable and often highly-processed foods. Any vegetables that are distributed are typically cast-offs from local farms or markets.

Without the food produced by the Five Loaves Farm there would be no fresh healthy vegetables to offer these members of our community. By our donations of high quality, nutritious, organic produce we communicate that the needy of our community are loved and as valuable as any other member of our society. It's a concrete way of communicating the love of Christ. We are fulfilling a very unique niche. What a blessing to be able to tangibly give of our “first fruits.”

I bet you would like to be a part of this. Come out any Monday evening from 5:00-7:00. It is an open time to hang out and work the soil with friends. We are also going to be in need of harvest help on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:00-12:00. You know the line… “the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” Send Emiko an email if you would like to help harvest.