This is the time of year when fresh food donations become scarcer at food pantries, while the line at the pantry door often gets longer. Twin Villages Foodbank Farm (TVFF) in Damariscotta has been hearing from Lincoln County partners and food pantries that more fresh food is needed into the winter months, and pantries need access to cold storage in order to take in larger donations of fresh food.

To meet this need, TVFF applied for and received funding from the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation and Quimby Family Foundation to support the creation of a food-safe storage hub. Located in the basement of River Association’s (DRA’s) Darrows Barn at Round Top Farm on Main Street in Damariscotta, the storage hub features a large walk-in cooler, plenty of space for long-term cool storage of root crops such onions, potatoes, garlic and squash, a sink for washing vegetables, and easy access for delivery and pick-up.

With the storage hub now complete, it is available for year-round cold and dry storage to benefit the farm as well as its pantry partners. Plenty of fresh food storage allows for more efficient distribution, and root crops can be kept long into the winter months.

The hub also allows for a pilot partnership between TVFF and Good Shepherd Food Bank. Good Shepherd will begin making regular deliveries of emergency food supplies to the hub, so that this food will be available to pantry partners when they need it most. With this new storage option available, pantries will no longer need to turn food donations away due to lack of storage space.

TVFF’s mission is to grow and distribute nutrient dense produce for those who need it most in Lincoln County. The farm has successfully increased production by 10,000 pounds each year since its first growing season in 2016, when the farm distributed 20,000 pounds of produce.  TVFF is now on track to produce and collect over 50,000 pounds of fresh food in 2019.

The Farm serves pantries in Newcastle, Jefferson, Boothbay, Wiscasset, Waldoboro, and Whitefield, and youth food programs including FARMS At The Y’s after-school snack program, Newcastle Head Start, Boothbay’s Backpack program, and Wiscasset’s Morris Farm School Cooking program.

Led by co-founders Sara Cawthon and Megan Taft, with support from Assistant Farm Manager Kaitlyn Gardner, TVFF operates in close partnership with Damariscotta River Association. DRA donates use of its prime farmland at Great Salt Bay Farm for growing, and generously provides valuable administrative, fundraising and communications support.

TVFF operates on an adaptation of the popular Community Supported Agriculture model which invites individuals and businesses to become members of the farm by purchasing a symbolic farm share, which is then donated to Lincoln County food pantries and low-income food programs throughout the growing season.

Since its first year of growing, Twin Villages Foodbank Farm has benefited from a network of support and has been a galvanizing force in addressing food security in Lincoln County. TVFF works closely with FARMS At The Y, Great Salt Bay Community School’s Agriculture Program, Lincoln Academy’s Magnet program, Midcoast Gleaners, Good Shepherd Food Bank’s Mainers Feeding Mainers program, Morris Farm Trust, and Lincoln County pantry partners.

A non-profit, membership supported, and nationally accredited land trust and conservation organization, TVFF’s partner Damariscotta River Association is dedicated to preserving and promoting the natural, cultural, and historical heritage of the Damariscotta region, centered on the Damariscotta River. 

DRA has active programs in the areas of land conservation, stewardship, community education, water quality monitoring, marine conservation and cultural preservation.

To donate to TVFF, please contact Sara Cawthon at scawthon@twinvillagesfarm.org. Secure donations may also be made online at twinvillagesfarm.org.