As reported by Feeding America, One in seven people face hunger in New Mexico, and the food insecurity rate for New Mexico is 13.5% as of 2021. 1 in 3 individuals who live in food-insecure homes may not be eligible for SNAP, the nation’s largest food assistance program. This means that having secure access to food is a struggle for many people and their families, and they’re unable to use government assistance to fill those gaps. That’s what makes organizations like Food is Free Albuquerque so important.

In their own words, the goal of Food is Free Albuquerque is to “foster social empowerment through the growing and sharing fresh food, striving to tap into the abundant private food resources within our community, redirecting millions of pounds to those overlooked by the existing food system.” This link shows their full mission statement and goals. This means they work to fill the gaps in the food system, distributing leftover produce to those in need. They focus on already existing resources through their fruit tree mapping systems. They glean from farms, neighborhoods, or even individual homes and donate the food to food banks and other distributors. No harvest is too small to give, you can even donate leftover produce from your garden by harvesting it yourself and organizing a pickup. Food is Free Albuquerque focuses on keeping people from slipping through the cracks of a system that’s underfunded and provides vital resources for the community.

The Food is Free movement started in Austin Texas by John Vandeusen Edwards on a tiny scale. He started with giving away a box of food he had grown from his own garden. From there, the movement took off. This video goes into more detail about the creation of the Food is Free movement and this article goes into depth about the original branch of Food is Free. From there, the movement gained steam and eventually, Food is Free came to New Mexico

The Albuquerque branch of Food is Free started with Erin and Trista in 2014. They noticed a large amount of fruit trees that went unharvested in the Albuquerque area and posted a Craigslist ad about it. They were overwhelmed with the response they received and organized their first harvest with the help of eager volunteers. From there, things have been growing for them ever since.

Not only does Food is Free Albuquerque focus on the fruit trees in Albuquerque, but they also serve the wider community. They glean from Great Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Belen, and in between. This link takes you to a registration page for your fruit tree to be included in their mapping system. Although the maps aren’t shared publicly for privacy’s sake, the data also helps Tree New Mexico and New Mexico State Urban Forestry track urban canopy coverage. Food is Free Albuquerque also provides a map of other gleaning organizations in the country, so if you weren’t able to find what you needed at their specific organization, you’d know where else to go to find resources.

Food is Free Albuquerque harvested 26,315 pounds of produce during 2023, and has their hopes set for an even higher yield this year. They have many community partners that take care of the distribution portion of the work, but they occasionally do giveaways directly after a harvest. You can follow their Facebook here and their Instagram here if you’re interested in keeping up to date with giveaways. Food is Free Albuquerque has partnered with over 50 different organizations to help distribute food to those who need it. This link takes you to their complete partnership page where each organization is listed. All of the work that Food is Free Albuquerque does falls under the Good Samaritan Act which ensures that all donations made by outside organizations to food distributors are of good quality.

Currently, it’s the off-season for many growers, but Food is Free Albuquerque doesn’t rest. Some of the events they’re gearing up for are their annual Seed Share and Pedals and Petals which is a bike and garden party that hosts workshops on how to start gardening. These resources help make gardening approachable and encourage households to get involved in their own backyard! If you’d like to keep up to date on any upcoming events that Food is Free Albuquerque is a part of, their newsletter sign-up is here.

Food is Free Albuquerque is all about promoting community and helping close the gap for food insecurity. They want to make sure no person is left behind and that we are using our resources to the fullest extent to support one another. They’re paving the way for a total revamp of how we think of food in our communities and they’re donating essential food to those who need it.

-Posted by Seth