Good Shepherd, Wyman's eye processing facility partnership

Good Shepherd Food Bank (GSFB) and Jasper Wyman & Son are in preliminary discussions with other stakeholders about the creation of a food-processing facility in Washington County that could increase jobs and agricultural capacity, expand access to local foods and provide high-quality vegetables to partner food pantries.
The project was in the works before the pandemic struck, and GSFB President Kristen Miale laughs ruefully that she sure wishes it was in operation now. She sees food distribution and supply through the lens of a magnifying glass of need. The food bank, working with the national Feeding America food bank and others, provides food to over 500 pantries and other partners across Maine.
Since the pandemic started, her nonprofit organization has seen a 100% increase in need. Normally GSFB's annual budget is $11 million. It now estimates the six‑month need ahead to be at $6.3 million. "There's a big increase in labor costs," she explains for GSFB, with bagging and overtime pay, and a significant increase in the need to purchase food. Usually GSFB purchases 10% of its food. That rate has increased to 40% because of food supply disruptions.
There are two food supply chains in the country: the food service chain that supplies restaurants, educational facilities and other large‑scale industries; and the retail food supply chain that homeowners are familiar with finding at the grocery store. With the food service supply chain in chaos, as reported widely in the news, the retail food supply chain has endured additional stress to its system. Where large grocery chains used to supply GSFB and other food pantries with food that was near its end‑of‑sale date, they now don't have that surplus to share.
Miale notes that Hannaford, which has partnered for years to supply the food bank, has been contending with a volume of retail sales that is similar to the Christmas holiday week, only it's been happening every week. The good news for the households with enough funds to buy everything they need is that "there are now fewer and fewer empty shelves." For those whose incomes are low or have been battered by the pandemic, the stress to find and afford items has increased.
"The whole crisis has put a magnifying glass to how broken the food system is," says Miale. "It doesn't work for everyone." She explains that the food bank system is a parallel food supply chain that is the result of two systemic issues: waste in food supply chains and not enough income in households to meet basic needs. If those two issues were resolved GSFB would be out of business -- a goal that she hopes may some day be reached.

Planning a local processing facility
When the pandemic struck the supply chain, Miale says that GSFB was offered 50-pound bags of chopped up lettuce or fruit from the food service supply chain side. It was impossible to use because of the short lifespan and the added need for volunteers or employees to handle the items to break them down into smaller parcels. There was no way for that chopped up fruit to be quickly rerouted to a processing facility for canning or freezing. Seeing the waste was frustrating, to say the least.
Miale says, "The challenge of the food-processing structure is that it's very centralized. There are no small processors" left in the region or country. In order to freeze or can that chopped up food, a large processor, such as Campbell's, would need to be involved, "and they're flat out." Where New England used to have small food processors spread all over, there are now no small ones left. She adds, "This is highlighting how the United States built a massive centralized operation with very little inventory in warehouses." She adds, "It can't move fast."
Hoping to change the local supply chain just a little, GSFB has been in conversations with Jasper Wyman & Son to create a food-processing plant in Washington County. "We've just formed Harvesting Good as a for‑profit subsidiary" of GSFB, Miale shares. The conversations include other potential partners such as Smith's Farm in Presque Isle, Hannaford and Sodexo, a company that provides food to institutions such as schools, nursing homes and hospitals. "We're hoping to pilot broccoli," Miale notes. If that goes well, then the processing facility could continue over the agricultural season with carrot coins, squash, potatoes and other crops that can be easily processed.
Jasper Wyman & Son President and CEO Tony Shurman explains that his company is committed to the conversations taking place. The company currently processes only wild blueberries at its facilities in Washington County. He notes that the company is in the exploratory phase, but there's a lot of excitement about the possibilities. "It really is one of those very attractive opportunities on so many levels." He adds that there's a lot to figure out, but that for his company and other stakeholders, "there are a whole host of benefits." Not only does it support GSFB's mission to source healthy food in Maine, but it could "be quite significant in terms of jobs" in processing as well as a boost for the agricultural community. Local food options are beneficial and desired by customers, he notes, and there are added environmental benefits to local food options.
Wyman's would benefit with the ability to diversify. "It would give us a new capability" in processing and freezing. "For 11 months those freezing tunnels are not maximized," Shurman explains. But in addition, the processing partnership would "enhance and build capability for us that would lead to additional business."
If all goes well, the timeline to prepare for processing is about 12 to 18 months, with the first processing taking place in fall 2021. Miale says, "I'd love to see it be a model for other parts of the country. Some states have no agriculture, others have lots." She adds, "Maine is in the middle." And while it wouldn't be replacing or competing with Birds Eye anytime soon, "the hope is that customers will choose to buy New England."
Being at the end of the supply chain means "we feel it the most when it's not working," and if Harvesting Good gets off the ground, Maine could be at the forefront of building some resiliency and flexibility back into the food supply chain.