Each Saturday morning in Kearney, Nebraska, the parking lot of a Kmart becomes a bustling, smiling, fresh food oasis as local farmers arrive to sell their goods to their community. The coordinators of the Campus Kitchen at the University of Nebraska-Kearney are there each week, collecting the leftovers and accepting donations from producers and consumers alike.

 ”Kearney has relatively limited resources when it comes to things such as the Farmer’s Market,” said Justine Derr, CKUNK coordinator, so she often schedules weekends away around whether or not there is someone to stop by the Farmer’s Market.

But it’s worth it. “The  benefits have been huge,” said Justine, “We get to serve fresh veggies  to our clients and they LOVE the extra fresh stuff!”

As is often the case with Campus Kitchens donations, unique situations arise: “For exameggplantple, a few times we got an exorbitant amount of eggplant,” said Justine. “We got to work and came up with all the different types of recipes using eggplant and absorbed it!”

The advantage of working with the Farmer’s Market folks is not just the extra fresh food, it’s also the opportunity to make connections in the Kearney community. Justine stressed that the success of the Farmer’s Market pickup is because of the relationships the’ve built. “Our Farmer’s Market leaders LOVE the idea behind CKP so whenever we pick up, their enthusiasm spreads amongst all the farmers there,” she said.  “They ‘sell us’ like no other–which means more food donated!”

At the end of each Saturday, the rewards are clear: “It’s so awesome to see fresh produce being used for a great cause and not just trashed,” said Justine.

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