AppHarvest Expands Support of Kentucky Food Banks

U.S. Rep. Andy Barr, Ky. Commissioner

of Agriculture

Ryan Quarles Join in The Celebration 

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Together with our friends and neighbors in Central Appalachia, our goal is to build a more resilient food system and one that helps those in need. In Kentucky alone, 20% of children and nearly 15% of adults experience food insecurity.[1]

We’re partnering with community organizations to address these needs and this week expanded our work with God’s Pantry Food Bank, which along with more than 400 distribution partners provides food to residents of 50 counties in Eastern and Central Kentucky. In its most recent fiscal year, the organization distributed nearly 14 million pounds of fresh fruits and veggies and more than 41 million pounds of food overall.

U.S. Rep. Andy Barr and Kentucky Commissioner of Agriculture Ryan Quarles joined AppHarvest Founder & CEO Jonathan Webb and God’s Pantry Food Bank CEO Michael Halligan this week in celebrating the expanded collaboration.

“God’s Pantry Food Bank is thrilled to work more closely with AppHarvest, as we nourish lives through sustainable agriculture,” said Halligan.

Added Commissioner Quarles: “Partnerships like these are important during the pandemic as all parts of our agricultural sector come together to help those in need. God’s Pantry Food Bank has been working overtime to support Kentuckians who have fallen on tough times, and I appreciate AppHarvest stepping up to the plate to provide fresh, Kentucky-grown products to support them in their mission to feed all Kentuckians."

The expanded collaboration builds on work in recent months by AppHarvest, along with more than a dozen Kentucky organizations, to provide aid after Kentucky’s ongoing historic levels of rainfall caused rising waters across many Appalachian counties. The Appalachia Rises initiative raised more than $1.2 million for flood relief and saw volunteers from AppHarvest and God’s Pantry Food Bank distribute healthy food to those affected.

“This is a great partnership that recognizes the needs in our communities and brings together organizations dedicated to serving Kentuckians,” said Rep. Barr. “In Congress, I voted for multiple bipartisan COVID-19 relief packages to boost our food supply by providing support to farmers, agribusinesses, and food banks around the country.”

Added Webb: “As a public benefit corporation and Certified B Corp, we at AppHarvest believe in good and are inspired daily by the faith and grit of those who’ve chosen to share their talents with us and join our mission. We’re working to create America’s AgTech capital here in Appalachia to provide affordable, nutritious, and delicious fruits and veggies that will help reduce hunger and food deserts.”

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Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements included in this press release that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements generally are accompanied by words such as “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “should,” “would,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “seem,” “seek,” “future,” “outlook,” and similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends or that are not statements of historical matters. All statements, other than statements of present or historical fact included in this press release, regarding AppHarvest’s future financial performance, as well as AppHarvest’s growth plans and strategy, ability to capitalize on commercial opportunities, future operations, estimated financial position, estimated adjusted EBITDA, revenues and losses, projected costs, prospects, plans and objectives of management are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on various assumptions, whether or not identified in this press release, and on the current expectations of AppHarvest’s management and are not predictions of actual performance. These forward-looking statements are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to serve as, and must not be relied on as, a guarantee, an assurance, a prediction, or a definitive statement of fact or probability. Actual events and circumstances are difficult or impossible to predict and will differ from assumptions. Many actual events and circumstances are beyond the control of AppHarvest. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those discussed in the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (No. 333-252964) filed with the SEC by AppHarvest on February 10, 2021 under the heading “Risk Factors,” and other documents AppHarvest has filed, or that AppHarvest will file, with the SEC. If any of these risks materialize or our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results could differ materially from the results implied by these forward-looking statements. In addition, forward-looking statements reflect AppHarvest’s expectations, plans, or forecasts of future events and views as of the date of this press release. AppHarvest anticipates that subsequent events and developments will cause its assessments to change. However, while AppHarvest may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, AppHarvest specifically disclaims any obligation to do so. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing AppHarvest’s assessments of any date subsequent to the date of this press release. Accordingly, undue reliance should not be placed upon the forward-looking statements.

[1] Feeding America

“The Future of Agriculture”: Goochland Tech Students Get New Vertical Farms While Demand Grows At Area Food Banks

GOOCHLAND COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Farm to table has a whole new meaning.

“It’s literally grown, sometimes even harvested and consumed in the same room,” said Meredith Thomas with Babylon Micro-Farms. 

Vertical Farming is one of the fastest growing trends in food production. Some call it the future of agriculture. Now, students at Goochland Tech will get the chance to learn all about it while their local community reaps the benefits. 

In a new partnership between GoochlandCares and Goochland Tech, two new vertical farms have been installed at the high school. According to Babylon Micro-farms, the Charlottesville company who made the farms and installed them in early August, “a single micro-farm takes up only 15 square feet but has the productive capacity around 2,000 square feet.”

The farms are active year-round and all aspects of farming are controlled by a cell phone app. 

“It’s a hydroponic farm designed to take the green thumb out of growing,” Thomas said.

She added this kind of farming is more environmentally sustainable — it uses no soil, no pesticides and roughly 90 percent less water.

“The nutrients and PH are controlled by sensors that check the water every single morning, and add nutrients, or PH balancing solution, or even water,” Thomas said.

Students will be taught about vertical farming while also supplying food to the pantry at GoochlandCares, which distributes food to neighbors in need.

“The pantry will receive both nutritious, locally grown fresh produce year-round and dishes prepared by the students with the harvests from the farms,” said Janet Matthews with Babylon Micro-Farms.

8News has witnessed long lines outside of food banks in our area for months. In Chesterfield on Friday, cars filled two lanes for over half a mile leading up to the Chesterfield Food Bank. That kind of backup has been seen on Ironbridge Road every weekend for the past several months. 

Before COVID-19 spread around the world, the Chesterfield Food Bank was helping anywhere from 8,000 to 12,000 people a month. Now, they say nearly 30,000 people utilize the food bank’s distribution programs each month — with 200 to 400 volunteers offering their help every week.

Chesterfield Food Bank averaging a million meals per month during the pandemic, triples in donations

“The recent COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the weak links in our country’s food distribution system, affecting everyone especially those who are most vulnerable. We hope that this partnership will be a model for many other food pantries to have a reliable in-house resource to provide fresh food,” said Sally Graham, Executive Director of Goochland Cares.

On Wednesday, the food pantry’s manager, Terri Ebright, said her team is “ecstatic” about the food that will be coming in. She said the demand for food has also grown at her pantry during the pandemic. “Our clients are relying on us even more.”

Goochland Tech Culinary Arts instructor David Booth said the new farms are a big deal for students.

“Right now I’ve got five different lettuces in there that I know half my students have never seen or tasted before,” he said. “It’s one of those things you don’t even really have to design a lesson plan around,”

“I just see it as a boundless opportunity. I really do,” Booth said.

You can learn more about how vertical farming works here.

By Alex Thorson

Posted: Sep 16, 2020 / 09:01 PM EDT - Updated: Sep 16, 2020 / 09:19 PM EDT

Publix Donates More Than 11 Million Pounds of Fresh Produce

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SEPTEMBER 07, 2020

The need for food assistance has reached unprecedented levels in this country due to the coronavirus pandemic with Feeding America estimating that an additional 17 million Americans may face hunger, bringing the total to 54 million Americans. As part of their commitment to help alleviate hunger, Publix and Publix Super Markets Charities are continuing their efforts to provide needed support to local communities and families through a combination of financial contributions, donations of fresh produce and milk purchased from southeastern farmers, Publix’s in-store perishable food recovery program and its Food for Sharing register campaign.

Publix Charities is donating an additional $3 million to Feeding America member food banks and other nonprofit partners, bringing it’s total 2020 giving to $5 million. Earlier this year, Publix Charities donated $2 million to Feeding America member food banks to help provide food and other essential support to people impacted by the pandemic. Its latest donation will support 32 member food banks throughout the Southeast as well as 215 other organizations throughout Publix’s operating area. For a complete list of donations to Feeding America member food banks, visit publixcharities.org/hunger.

Additionally, as the pandemic created an unexpected decrease in demand, many produce and dairy farmers across the Southeast found themselves dumping or plowing over product they could no longer sell. Meanwhile, food banks throughout the region were reporting substantial increases — some as high as 300 percent to 400 percent — in need. To bridge the gap, Publix implemented a program to purchase surplus produce and milk from farmers and deliver it directly to food banks. Since April, Publix has purchased and delivered more than 11 million pounds of produce and 500,000 gallons of milk to Feeding America member food banks throughout the Southeast.

“Millions of Americans aren’t sure where they will get their next meal, and as a food retailer, we can make a difference,” said Publix CEO Todd Jones. “It’s been our privilege at Publix to help people in need for many years, most recently with our new program supporting farmers, food banks and families hit particularly hard by the pandemic. Publix is also grateful to Publix Charities for their continuing efforts to alleviate hunger in the communities we serve by bringing nourishment to people who need it most, especially during these difficult times.”

A Visionary Partner of Feeding America, Publix has worked to alleviate hunger for many years. Every day in stores, as part of its perishable food recovery program, Publix associates gather wholesome but unsalable dairy, deli, meat, and produce items to give to member food banks and other nonprofits. Since 2011, Publix has donated more than 525 million pounds of food, equaling over 400 million meals, including more than 35 million meals already donated in 2020.

Twice each year, Publix offers its Food for Sharing campaign, allowing customers to join in its efforts to alleviate hunger by making donations at checkout. Over the last 11 years, Publix customers have contributed almost $96 million toward hunger-relief efforts. Customers are invited to support their local food banks by making donations in stores Sept. 1 – 13.

“Food banks across the country have been working tirelessly to meet increased demand, but we cannot do it alone,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America. “The most vulnerable people in our communities — including many children and seniors — need us now more than ever. Valued partners like Publix and Publix Charities allow us to respond more efficiently and effectively when our clients need us the most.”