Gleaning in the 21st Century: Urban food recovery and community food security in Ontario, Canada

Abstract

Historic gleaning activities in Europe took place in farmers’ fields where gleaners could collect the leftovers of the harvest. One of the primary motivations for modern gleaning in Canadian cities is to donate fresh food to local organizations such as food banks. As there is currently little research in this area, this study aims to explore how gleaning initiatives contribute to community food security. The study is based on interviews and surveys with volunteers from several gleaning organizations in Ontario, combined with the Dietitians of Canada’s Food Security Continuum (FSC) as a framework for analysis. Findings include that gleaning contributes to all three stages of the FCS: initial food systems change, food systems in transition, and food systems redesign for sustainability. Respondents felt that while the amount of food harvested could be scaled up, there were benefits that augmented community food security, such as increased food literacy, food awareness, community cohesiveness, and a fresh food supply. Overall, this study improves our understanding of how gleaning initiatives can contribute to community food security. With better ongoing support from the community and on the policy agenda, such projects could further enhance their impacts.

Relational and Logistical Dimensions of Agricultural Food Recovery: Evidence from California Growers and Recovery Organizations

“…Our evidence is generally consistent with prior research finding that the logistical systems to support food recovery vary widely by farm, recovery outlet, and food product [11,15,37,38,45,46,[56][57][58]. As one food bank employee explained, "There's not any one magic, silver bullet way to get all food waste.…”

Assessment of the Activities of Food Crop Gleaners in Delta State, Nigeria

“…In earlier centuries, long before gleaning was a legislated activity for the poor, it was simply the final phase of the harvesting process (Vardi 1993). According to Marshman (2015), modern gleaning shares both similarities and distinct differences from these accounts. Individuals and groups are freely giving their time to recover food for donation to social service agencies.…”

Hidden Harvest's Transformative Potential: An Example of 'Community Economy'

“…However, they warn that despite the growing popularity and interest in urban harvesting projects, the scalability of these initiatives is difficult to ascertain (Clark & Nicholas, 2013). Cognizant of its popularity, Marshman (2015) explores the myriad motivations people have to pursue urban gleaning across five case study sites in Ontario, identifying three key reasons (to mitigate food waste, build community, and access free food) amid other desires (to engage socially or generally seek alternatives). Clark and Nicholas (2013) argue that urban harvesting requires a more fulsome theorization.…”