Traditionally defined as gathering what’s left in the field after a harvest, gleaning has a long history in agriculture. On the Central Coast, that tradition has been adapted to modern times by volunteers such as alumna Susan McTaggart (Natural Resources Management, ’76)

“A lot of what we do does meet that traditional definition of gleaning, but we’ve broadened it,” McTaggart explained. “It definitely isn’t leftovers or seconds, I’d call it extra. If a farmer has extra they call us.”

McTaggart volunteers with GleanSLO, a program of the SLO Food Bank. The program was recently featured in a New York Times article on gleaning as another way to fight hunger and give back during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since its inception in 2010, GleanSLO volunteers have “rescued” nearly two million pounds of produce from San Luis Obispo county farms and backyards, including Cal Poly’s own fields.

“Working with organizations like GleanSLO and the SLO Food Bank we make sure that nothing goes to waste and is instead used by our community in this exceptional time of need during the pandemic,” said Dan Chesini, plant operations manager at Cal Poly, overseeing all agricultural land on campus.

Chesini said that Cal Poly has been working with GleanSLO for approximately two years, donating leafy greens, strawberries and various fruits from the U-pick orchards such as mandarin oranges, peaches and apples. At the start of the pandemic, and with no students on campus to harvest or sell the produce, about 10,000 pounds of mandarin oranges were donated to the Food Bank.

"All efforts to coordinate the harvest process and donations with organizations such as GleanSLO are due to the efforts of our amazing crops unit staff," Chesini said, "including our crops technician Johnny Rosecrans and market coordinator Jill Caggiano."

He estimated that during a normal month, Cal Poly sends approximately 200 pounds of produce to the organization.

“It has made me so happy to see the relationship we’ve developed with Cal Poly,” McTaggart said. “Cal Poly is just an amazing donor. We get tons of citrus and in the last few weeks we were out there picking strawberries – they were just gorgeous.”

McTaggart has been a volunteer with GleanSLO for six years. She explained that picking extra produce is just one aspect of the group’s operations. Volunteers also go to the Morro Bay, Templeton and San Luis Obispo farmers' markets weekly, where farmers donate their extra produce, and they’ll even make a visit to local backyards to take those extra plums, peaches or oranges off of a homeowner’s hands. In fact, nearly a third of their monthly harvest haul is from backyard harvests, she said.

The group, of course is always looking for more, she added. More backyards to glean, more relationships with local farmers who occasionally have extra produce on their hands and more volunteers to work the fields.

“If you like to be outdoors and you believe in eating a healthy diet and want to give back to your community, this is just the perfect opportunity,” McTaggart said.

If you like to be outdoors and you believe in eating a healthy diet and want to give back to your community, this is just the perfect opportunity.

susan McTaggart

Natural Resources management, ’76

“One of the benefits that I didn’t anticipate is that you just meet the nicest people who are so generous with their time,” she added. “When you’re out there, it just makes you feel good about the world."

To learn more about GleanSLO go to gleanslo.org or email gleanslo@slofoodbank.com. Farmers or homeowners with extra produce, can also fill out this form directly.