Seeds That Feed is a local non-profit dedicated to fighting against food insecurity in Northwest Arkansas. The nonprofit, whose outreach includes Benton County and Washington County, has created several programs focused on providing accessible and healthy food options for the food insecure.
The nonprofit was unexpectedly established in 2012 by Alyssa Snyder, chief seeder; Margaret Thomas, chief feeder; and Aron Shelton, co-chair, after graduating college and immediately entering a recession. The three friends were pursuing careers that they did not find fulfilling and were on the hunt for something new. One fateful evening, they found themselves in a conversation about the high rates of food insecurity in Arkansas and decided to bring awareness to the issue. The team quickly began planting the seeds of an idea that would eventually feed thousands of Northwest Arkansas residents struggling with food insecurity.
Snyder and Thomas hit the ground running to establish Seeds That Feed. “We went to the Dig In Food and Farming Festival in 2012 with an idea we called “care cropping,” which would help to get healthier foods in food pantries,” said Snyder. The idea was that farms would dedicate time to plant extra food which the Seeds That Feed team would harvest themselves. The food would then be placed inside of food pantries; however, the Seeds That Feed team quickly learned that most farmers don’t have the time to grow extra crops. Fortunately for the nonprofit, they didn’t need to. The team discovered that farms often have fruits and vegetables leftover from their harvests or that are not “aesthetically pleasing” enough to be sold in farmers markets, despite being edible, that end up being composted. It was this information that allowed Seeds That Feed to begin building their food inventory.
“[Seeds That Feed] happened very much by accident and things just took off from there. We were not expecting to get as much food as we did – our first day at the Fayetteville Farmers Market, we got 45 pounds of leafy greens!” said Snyder.
The Seeds That Feed team often receives hundreds of pounds of produce from local farms that they divide and donate back to the community. Snyder and Thomas also affirmed that they would never give out any food that they would not eat themselves.
As the Seeds That Feed team continued to connect with and donate to food pantries, they realized that many people actually struggled to reach the pantries. “We started thinking about all these people that couldn’t meet [food pantries’] odd hours, that had no transportation, the people that are homebound or ill,” said Thomas. To combat this, Snyder and Thomas decided to establish Seeds That Feed’s mobile food pantry. Several times a week, Synder branches out across Northwest Arkansas to bring free crops to areas with food insecurity, often reaching up to twenty-five locations a week.
In 2021, Seeds That Feed began utilizing Friendly Fridges, which are refrigerators placed around the city that are routinely filled with fruits, vegetables, or meals by Seeds That Feed or anyone in the community that feels led to contribute. The Friendly Fridges are wildly popular, with people often lining up to browse the refrigerator’s offerings, according to Snyder.
“[Friendly Fridges] help us to be able to distribute food regardless of timing, and people that have extra perishables can also put items in the fridge, especially around the holidays,” said Thomas.
Currently, Seeds That Feed utilizes a network of five Friendly Fridges, which are located at Shared Beginnings, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Veteran Affairs Medical Center - Fayetteville, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, and Hillcrest Towers Senior Center. After receiving a hearty donation from the Walmart Foundation, the nonprofit hopes to expand their network to eleven refrigerators by 2026, according to Snyder.
Seeds That Feed can also often be found stationed at local farmers’ markets, where they collect surplus produce donated by the market’s vendors, which is weighed and sorted in bins that are delivered to multiple locations serving food insecure residents. Additionally, Synder and Thomas provide educational materials that instruct individuals on how to prepare certain ingredients. They also provide instruction on how to sign up for SNAP benefits and how they can be used to purchase items at farmer’s markets.
The community has been very receptive to Seeds That Feed’s different methods of donating produce. The two women often receive kind notes, words of thanks and shoutouts by those they help, all of which help remind the Seeds That Feed team why they continue their mission.
“Hearing and knowing that someone just, off the cuff, is saying that it matters to them is life changing,” they said.
Snyder and Thomas have also noticed the social benefits that come along with the Seeds That Feed programs.
“People come out and come together around the food, and it’s like a catalyst for other things happening, too. Food has the tendency to lead to other outcomes that we weren’t even anticipating, like socialization and cooking and talking about what they’re going to do with their zucchini,” said Thomas and Snyder.
Seeds That Feed’s impact has been large in working to overcome food insecurity, feeding an average of 30,000 people a year, according to Snyder and Thomas, but they know they can’t take all of the credit. The nonprofit is partnered with over 70 farms in Northwest Arkansas and 50 nonprofits and partner sites that are dedicated to feeding the food insecure, including Cobblestone Farms, Ozark All Seasons, Spring Creek Food Hub, the Fayetteville Farmers Market, and the Bentonville Farmers Market.
The Northwest Arkansas community has also been a great resource for aiding the food insecure, according to the Seeds That Feed team, whether it be through individuals leaving meals and ingredients in the Friendly Fridges or by volunteering with the nonprofit.
For those who are interested in joining the fight against food insecurity in Northwest Arkansas, Snyder and Thomas suggest several ways to get started, including bringing fresh, unopened healthy food over to a Friendly Fridge, monetarily sponsoring a Friendly Fridge, donating to the nonprofit, hosting a fundraiser, and choosing to shop locally and at farmers markets.
Other ways to help advance Seeds That Feed’s mission is to be more mindful of the food you bring into your home. Learning how to store food properly can extend its shelf life. Cutting down on products you routinely find yourself throwing away is a small step towards shrinking food waste.
“We should try not to be hard on ourselves. Food waste is something that just inherently happens, but we all want to work more and more to see less and less of that,” said Snyder. “That’s what this work is about, but, individually, we just need to keep it in mind.”
As the holiday season approaches, Seeds That Feed remains committed to supporting our neighbors throughout Northwest Arkansas. Their efforts to combat food insecurity not only provide essential resources but also foster community connections. By participating in their initiatives, we can all contribute to creating a more generous and supportive environment for those in need plant the seeds of compassion and care, making a lasting impact year-round.
For more information about Seeds That Feed, visit their website at seedsfeed.org. Monetary donations can be provided through their website or through Venmo at @SeedsThatFeed.
"Seeds That Feed happened very much by accident and things just took off from there. We were not expecting to get as much food as we did."
"Food has the tendency to lead to other outcomes that we weren’t even anticipating, like socialization and cooking and talking about what they’re going to do with their zucchini."