Harvest Rescue Partnership
Good food should not go to waste.
Not every crop comes out market-perfect. Sometimes there is simply too much. Sometimes tomatoes are oddly shaped, zucchini grows larger than expected, or a field still has good food left at the end of the season.
At Mill Street Market, we believe that food still has value.
Our Harvest Rescue Partnership gives local farmers and producers another option for wholesome surplus, cosmetically imperfect produce, end-of-season crops, and products that need to move quickly.
How It Works
If you have usable farm products that may otherwise go unsold or unused, contact Mill Street Market.
Depending on the product and our current needs, we may be able to:
- Purchase it at a reduced rescue price
- Accept it as a donation
- Arrange pickup when possible
- Use it through the Farm Stop, Cafe, commercial kitchen, childcare meals, culinary education, or food-access programs
- Explore a gleaning opportunity when crops remain in the field at the end of harvest
There is never an expectation that a farmer donate product. We want this partnership to work for growers as well as the community.
Why Harvest Rescue?
Farmers invest significant time, labor, land, and resources into producing food. Yet perfectly wholesome food can still be difficult to sell because of appearance, size, timing, overproduction, or changing market demand.
Harvest Rescue helps create another path for that food.
By working together, we can:
- Reduce food waste. Keep good local food from being discarded or left in the field.
- Support local farmers. Provide another potential outlet when farmers have surplus or a crop that needs to move quickly.
- Keep local food affordable. Lower-cost and donated products can help Mill Street expand access to locally grown food.
- Create more community value. Surplus ingredients may become affordable produce, cafe specials, prepared foods, childcare meals, cooking classes, preserved foods, or other mission-based uses.
What Kind of Food Are We Looking For?
Examples may include:
- Surplus produce
- Cosmetically imperfect fruits and vegetables
- Oversized or undersized produce
- End-of-season crops
- Overproduction
- Crops with a short sales window
- Wholesome products that need to move quickly
- Field crops available for potential gleaning
All products must still meet Mill Street Market's food-safety and quality standards.
Have Something Available?
Sometimes the easiest partnership starts with a simple message: “I have 150 pounds of peppers that need to move by Friday.”
Tell us what you have, approximately how much is available, and when it needs to move. Our team will let you know whether Mill Street can use it and what option might make the most sense.
Help Us Rescue the Harvest
Grow good food. Keep good food moving. Help make local food accessible to more people.
Why This Matters to Mill Street
Harvest Rescue is part of Mill Street Market’s larger mission to build a stronger, more accessible local food system.
By creating another outlet for surplus and cosmetically imperfect food, we can support local farmers, reduce food waste, and help keep locally grown food affordable for our community.
The food we recover can create value throughout Mill Street — from the Farm Stop and Cafe to culinary education, childcare meals, food-access initiatives, and opportunities for food entrepreneurs.
It is one more way we can connect the people who grow our food with the people who need it while making the most of what our region produces.
Have Something Available?
Sometimes the easiest partnership starts with a simple message: “I have 150 pounds of peppers that need to move by Friday.”
Tell us what you have, approximately how much is available, and when it needs to move. Our team will let you know whether Mill Street can use it and what option might make the most sense.
Help Us Rescue the Harvest
Grow good food. Keep good food moving. Help make local food accessible to more people.
* While construction is underway, we are eager to speak with farmers throughout the state of Michigan, small product producers, and entrepreneurs interested in having their products available in retail and/or our online offerings!
Mill Street Market Mission
Our mission is to strengthen local food systems, improve access to healthy food, and create economic opportunities for local farmers and small businesses through an integrated set of services.