Promoting Community Health, One Carrot at a Time

Health Insurance Foundations make big investments to support New Britain food security

[New Britain, CT, JUNE 2020] Two thousand pounds. That’s the goal for the amount of food New Britain ROOTS is targeted to grow across their gardens in 2020. It’s planting season for the nonprofit, which farms at 12 locations throughout the city - a complex task essential to their mission of food security through urban agriculture. That’s why ROOTS has been looking for supporters who understand the integral role food plays in shaping the health of a community.

Cue in Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation. The Foundation invested $30,000 in grants to ROOTS over the past two years, also awarding the organization an additional $10,000 for COVID-19 emergency funding.

“For some time now, we’ve been supporting local food partners like ROOTS across the region – growers, gleaners, distributors – all food justice activists – to make sure everyone can eat healthy food,” said Karen Voci, president of the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation. “We are proud to support all groups helping families eat better, and to challenge head-on the daily issues of food insecurity and racial injustice. Now more than ever, we need to care for one another in the most basic ways.”

All the food grown by ROOTS is distributed in New Britain, either to area food pantries or sold by youth at the farmers’ market.

“$40,000 goes a long way for a grassroots organization like ours,” Joey Listro ROOTS Executive Director and Founder explains. “Harvard Pilgrim Foundation’s investment allows us to expand production and offer more opportunities to engage with youth and volunteers in agriculture.”

The ROOTS Mobile Farmers Market has been serving up fresh fruits and veggies in the Hardware City for the past 6 years. The Market provides a platform for youth to gain skills in sales and marketing all while addressing a major concern common in under resourced cities, lack of access to locally grown food. ROOTS offers assistance to shoppers using SNAP benefits, cutting the cost by 50% for all fruits and vegetables purchased. But when asked about the core mission of the market Listro says, “we are meeting people where they’re at,” adding “so many of our neighbors cannot afford or find good food. ROOTS works to bring the farmers table to them, and to promote equity and inclusion in the good food movement for all people.” One othe most challenging demographics to “meet where they’re at” is New Britain’s older population. It’s no secret that there is immense need in supporting the aging population, but ROOTS is finding ways to connect older people with good food - or the tools to grow it.

Introducing the Food Is Love Project. Initiated by a Momentum Fund grant provided by the Tufts Health Plan Foundation, Food Is Love seeks to build relationships between older people and the food they eat. The project is launching in June with the creation of home garden kits to be installed at the homes of eligible adults. It will continue throughout the summer with a farmers market delivery service for older people coordinated by ROOTS and the New Britain Senior Center. “Many older adults are at higher risk for COVID-19 and the more we can reduce their exposure to the virus the safer we are as a community,” says Listro, explaining how delivering produce will reduce the amount of trips to the grocery store or farmers market.

The Momentum Fund at Tufts Health Plan Foundation invests in communities and projects designed to support healthy aging. “It’s reassuring to see health insurance companies making the connection between healthy food consumption and preventative care,” Listro says. With an investment in Connecticut topping $250,000 in 2019 for growing and distributing healthy food, Harvard Pilgrim Foundation has made healthy food access a cornerstone of their mission. “Food is the common denominator for all people,” Listro shares. “When our relationship with food is unhealthy, many aspects of our community are unhealthy. That’s why we are dedicated to building relationships using food as a source for love and health for all.”

###

Seniors interested in applying for the raised bed garden kit or farmers’ market delivery service can reach out to the New Britain Senior Center by calling (860) 826-3553.