Hungry Harvest is expanding into South Jersey and your patronage can help the needy.
If we truly do eat with our eyes first, Hungry Harvest couldn't have capitalized upon that popular belief any better. What's more, the produce peddler's recent expansion into South Jersey has a two-fold benefit.
In this provided photo, Hungry Harvest produce delivery packages are pictures. The company is expanding to towns across Camden and Burlington counties, Jan. 27, 2017. (Photo provided) The delivery service -- which got a $100,000 boost last year after appearing on the television show "Shark Tank" -- deals in sales and donations of ugly, unloved or unwanted produce.
"Our customers really care about having an impact on the world," Hungry Harvest Philadelphia Manager Cynthia Plotch said. "We believe in these communities and their socially-conscious purchasing decisions."
Following the company's fourth expansion last month, the towns that Hungry Harvest will now cater to include Cherry Hill, Moorestown, Haddonfield, Mount Laurel, Haddon Township, Haddon Heights, Audubon, Oaklyn, Collingswood and Maple Shade.
Plotch said the company hopes to add about 100 customers during the first two months of its South Jersey expansion. That figure will be added to the approximately 5,000 customers across the mid-Atlantic region.
The bread and butter of Hungry Harvest is a rescued bounty of ugly ducklings: Either a farmer's abundance of goods they'll never get around to selling or produce that doesn't fit the image of what we think an apple or carrot is supposed to look like.
Thus far, Hungry Harvest has donated more than 400 thousand pounds of produce and have "rescued" just shy of 2 million pounds, Plotch said.
"People are excited to actively fight food waste," she added.
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According to Hungry Harvest figures, 40 percent of food in the U.S. goes to waste while one in six people go hungry. Further, figures provided by Philabundance show 66 percent and 43 percent of residents of Camden and Burlington counties, respectively, are eligible for food stamps or other assistance.
The company works with local farms to purchase the goods, including Blue Moon Acres in Pennington, Mercer County; Dottavio Produce in Minotola, Atlantic County; and Dandrea Produce, in Vineland.
It then offers $15 boxes delivered to customer's doorsteps, which Plotch said comes at a cost that's 20 to 30 percent cheaper than shopping at other outlets for the same goods.
She added that those home deliveries subsidize donations Hungry Harvest makes to organizations such as Philabundance, which serves about 9,000 needy recipients weekly across Camden, Burlington, Gloucester and Salem counties as well as five counties in Pennsylvania.
"We're really big on new partnerships," Philabundance spokeswoman Amanda White said last week.
For every box sold, Hungry Harvest donated one to two pounds of food. It sent over 1,299 pounds and 2,125 pounds of produce in October and December 2016, respectively.
Yes, that's a lot of fresh fruits and veggies.
"Especially for a start-up," said White. "This is quality product."
For additional information on the company and how to sign up, visit hungryharvest.net.
Greg Adomaitis may be reached at gadomaitis@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @GregAdomaitis. Find NJ.com on Facebook.