Gleaning is the act of gathering food that would otherwise not be sold. This includes harvesting surplus crops with volunteers, receiving surplus food, and harvesting or receiving food grown specifically for donation.

Some farms donate crops because they don't meet store quality standards, they grow more than they can sell, or they are not able to harvest produce in time. In those cases, Island Grown Gleaning is able to harvest large areas of ripe produce with our team of dedicated volunteers. We spend extra time removing old leaves, checking for spots, and thoughtfully distributing the food we glean.

At Island Grown Initiative's own farm, we glean approximately one third of the produce we grow. IGI also receives fish from the MV Striped Bass & Bluefish Derby and venison from the Venison Donation Program, a collaboration between IGI, the MV Agricultural Society, the MV Tick program, and MassWildlife's Hunters Share the Harvest program.

IGI shares gleaned food with every Island school, the Island Food Pantry, Serving Hands, Kinship Heals, IGI's Prepared Meals Program, and other organizations. We facilitate food system education by hosting gleaning field trips for students of all ages.