South Central PA Harvest Hub

“You don’t need a silver fork to eat

good food.”A Farm-to-Institution Food Hub

Dillsburg, PA

Est. June 2015

Farm to School Education & School Gardens at

Northern York County School District

NYCSD Vacation Garden School

Farm to School Procurement:

The South Central PA Harvest Hub began in 2015 with a

USDA farm to school grant

Harvest Hub Background

Initial goal was to be a “virtual” food hub to

create a fluid supply for 25,000 students in

York, Adams and Cumberland Counties

Infrastructure and time realities led to second

USDA (Rural Business Development) grant to

purchase refrigerated Sprinter van in 2016

Now, 45,000 students served in 4 counties

with produce from 7 different farms, delivered

by the Harvest Hub

SCPA Harvest Hub Now Serves 12

Districts In Four Counties

• Adams

• Cumberland

• Dauphin

• York

Sprinter Van Serves As “Mini

Warehouse”

Insulated and refrigerated, the van helps us meet the logistical challenges of getting from farms to 12 school districts safely, as well as providing temporary storage capacity.

SCPA Harvest Hub Steering

Committee

• Scott Shedlock, Food Service Director at

NYCSD

• Jason Young, Business Manager at NYCSD

Carol Richwine, Northern York County

School District (NYCSD) Horticulture

Teacher, founder of the Hub

Dr. Eric Eschbach,

NYCSD Superintendent

Diane Staz,

Food Hub

Coordinator

Patrick Andrews, Former Hub

Coordinator and now District Chief

of Markets and Farm To School Lead

at the PA Department of Agriculture

Carla Snyder, Penn State

Extension Ag

Entrepreneurship &

Marketing Educator, and

co-author of original grant

A Day In The Life…

Other Achievements

Summer sales begun in 2017

Online ordering platform instituted through Local Orbit

2016-2017 total sales $48,225 with a gross profit of $8,298

Partnering with Healthcare Without Harm on

PA Department of Ag block grant to bring local

produce into hospitals

Example of Local Orbit Product List

Next Steps

• Goal of initial South Mountain Partnership grant to create a financially sustainable food hub

• Farmer cooperative creation begun, Capital Area Farmers Alliance is in the process of incorporation and will partner with the Hub

• Capital Resource, Conservation & Development of Carlisle is our temporary fiscal sponsor as we transition into a more permanent entity. We are looking for a permanent non-profit home!

• Harvest Hub partnership with Health Care Without Harm is opening doors to get more local food into hospitals

• Lots of cross-organizational partnership is happening to help strengthen our local food system!