Planting for a Purpose supplies our community with fresh produce
Written By Andrew Kennard and Lauren Knisbeck
A gardener totes their bountiful harvest from the Community Church Harvest in 2022. Photo submitted by Rachel Quintas.
If you’re planning your spring garden this growing season, we encourage you to consider the Brown County Community Gardens’ program Planting for a Purpose (PFP) as you plant the seeds for a bountiful harvest! Mark your calendar for this Saturday March 22, 2025 to learn more about PFP at the Brown County Central Library. Pastries and free seeds will be provided.
What is Planting for a Purpose?
Created in 2016 originally as a partnership project between the Brown County Community Gardens (BCCG) and the Green Bay Packers, Planting for a Purpose (PFP) aims to give back to our community by distributing literal tons of fresh produce to those in need. The project is now run by the BCCG and FOODWIse programs.
“Through PFP efforts, our goals are to decrease food waste in our community, to create coherence within the community, and to increase food security,” explained Brown County Urban Agriculture & Community Gardens Coordinator Rachel Quintas. According to Quintas, anyone can participate in the initiative whether you’re an experienced gardener or trying your hand at growing for the first time. You do not need to be involved in the BCCG program to participate either.
How does it work?
Individuals can sign up to participate in PFP and their donations will go directly to food pantries in Brown County. (Note the 2025 sign up form will be published soon!) Past donation recipients include Paul’s Pantry and Manna for Life Ministries, but there are many more food pantries participants can donate to.
“We would love it if we could expand this program outwards, both to include more gardeners, but also to include even more of our local pantries,” said Liz Murphy, Brown County FoodWIse Health Communities Coordinator. She said there are more than 30 food pantries in Brown County.
If you don’t have your own gardening space but still want to get involved, you could rent space at a county community garden, Murphy said. Or, consider volunteering at a local food pantry.
5th Street Community Garden is one of many community garden spaces the BCCG provides that can be rented according to plot size. Photo submitted by Rachel Quintas.
Many pantries are especially interested in bilingual volunteers, Murphy said. It’s helpful to speak one of the languages spoken by many local immigrants and refugees, such as Somali, Spanish, and Mung.
Click here to learn which food pantries you can donate to, and what type of produce they are in need of.
“Our resources offer participants a place to record their donation weights each time they donate at the pantry. Our program then shares end of the season weights to each individual participant (personal certificates with the weight each participant donated) and, Planting for a Purpose weight donations as a whole group. The BCCG also relays pantry information to participants and shares what produce is most needed at the pantries,” Quintas said.
Thousands of individuals and families in the Brown County area rely on food pantries. “Local food pantries report that there is a great demand for more fresh produce donations to meet clients’ needs, and those participating in Planting for a Purpose help to meet those needs,” Quintas said.
In fact, Paul’s Pantry has seen record-breaking numbers of families served for three years straight. “We’re averaging 250 families per day, five days a week. We will distribute about 20,000 to 25,000 pounds of food per day,” Assistant Executive Director of Paul’s Pantry, Bob Hornacek said. Hornacek said that the contributions from PFP help the pantry keep up with the increasing demand for fresh produce.
Paul’s Pantry is located on 1315 Leo Frigo Way, Green Bay, WI and participates in Planting for a Purpose as a donation site. See the Paul’s Pantry food needs list here. Photo submitted by Stephanie Martinez.
“[The donations help] a lot. We always say every little bit counts whether it's one person dropping off two tomatoes, or an acre of tomatoes, or a truckload – it all adds up into something beautiful. Our shoppers love the fresh produce that we’re able to offer. Especially the fresh produce from people’s gardens in the summer,” he said.
In 2023, PFP donations amounted to over 9,000 pounds of fresh produce in our community. That number saw a decrease in 2024 due to a tough growing season, but Quintas and those involved with the project are determined to increase participation this year. From 10am - 11am on March 22, 2025 at the Brown County Central Library, people can look forward to a comprehensive presentation about PFP, the impact it’s had on our community for nearly a decade, and the history of the BCCG program. See event details here.
Anyone interesting in participating in Planting for a Purpose is invited to attend the informational session on March 22nd hosted by Brown County FOODWIse, BCCG, and Brown County. Graphic from BCCG Facebook.
We encourage you to get involved in supplying our community with fresh, nutritious food because as Hornacek put it, “it’s certainly not anything anybody could do alone, it takes all kinds of people all different types of organizations doing every little bit [possible.]”
PFP Tips:
Per the PFP page on Brown County’s website, here are some helpful tips when deciding what to grow and how to successfully harvest your produce.
“Some of our pantries do request that if possible, you donate things that are a little more stable,” Murphy said. “So there’s staples like cabbage, onions, garlic, things that last a little bit longer… Another thing that we’re trying to highlight locally is that we do have more Hispanic and Latino families, more families coming from different cultures.”
Food pantries often prefer produce that will last longer and is easy to store. Photo submitted by Stephanie Martinez.
It’s helpful if people are willing to donate things that are more useful for those families, she said. This might include jalapenos, bell peppers, onions, squash and zucchini.
What to grow:
Pantries accept almost any kind of produce from participants, but often prefer produce that is easy to store. Examples include:
Carrots
Green Beans
Potatoes
Cucumbers
Onions
Apples
Corn
Squash
Tomatoes
How to harvest and store:
Wash hands before handling produce
Brush off as much mud and soil as possible
Store different types of produce separately in food-safe containers
Keep animals and pets out of the garden
Choose a spot with uncontaminated soil for your garden
If you’re not donating it right away, follow the recommended refrigeration guidelines
If you wouldn’t eat it, don’t donate it
For information on the BCCG program and plot rentals, click here.
For information on PFP, click here.