lēf Farms donates $250K in baby greens to feed Northeast healthcare workers

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, New Hampshire-based lēf Farms has continued to support front-line healthcare workers across New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey with more than $250,000 in baby greens over the past six months — a total of 50,000 meals.

“We’ve always seen ourselves as community advocates first and foremost”, said lēf Farms founder Henry Huntington through a press release. “The whole reason we started lēf Farms was to reduce our community’s reliance on food sources outside our region by offering healthy local alternatives. We feel a healthy community is one that grows and prospers together. Our ability to bring fresh greens to those logging countless hours to fight this pandemic is just another way to keep our community healthy and strong.”

What began in March as a casual conversation about the country’s pandemic relief efforts led to lēf taking a more aggressive approach in its own region. lēf reached out to business partners to gauge interest in supporting healthcare workers. In a matter of hours, lēf secured thousands in financial support from key vendors, like International Paper, Macaran Printed Products, Inline Plastic, and its parent company, Pleasant View Gardens — demonstrating the willingness of the businesses community to rally for this cause.

With support from business partners, lēf also contacted one of New England’s top grocers, Stop & Shop, joining forces and providing fresh greens directly to dedicated front-line workers. Through the Stop & Shop’s “Feeding the Frontline” program, lēf provided 30,000 servings of fresh baby greens to medical first-responders at Mount Sinai and Long Island Community Hospital in New York, Pascack Valley Medical Center in New Jersey, and Boston Medical Center and Children’s Hospital.

Given the success of the Stop & Shop partnership, lēf turned its focus closer to home by inviting local New Hampshire food suppliers to join in. Pete & Gerry’s added organic eggs to the mix. Other suppliers fell in line, like Contoocook Creamery, which donated fresh milk. Before long, a small team of farmers were assembled to lift the spirits of healthcare providers and motivate them to continue their good fight. This local program provided an assortment of local products for 1,000 healthcare professionals at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Centers (DHMC) throughout New Hampshire.

“With several special events throughout the month of August, our dedicated staff was treated to fresh greens, milk, and eggs to keep them going,” said DHMC media relations manager Audra Burns. “Plus, lēf’s efforts mesh perfectly with the hospital’s own internal wellness and healthy eating. We couldn’t be more grateful.”