Local Orchard Partners with Mid-Ohio Food Collective to Combat Food Insecurity

ADAMSVILLE, OH – As September kicks off Hunger Action Month, a local farm in Muskingum County is playing a key role in feeding families across Ohio.

Yeary Orchards, a family-owned farm that covers 99 acres in Adamsville, grows 14 different types of apples. The apple harvest is well underway, but these apples aren’t just going to the market, they’re heading to the tables of families in need across central and eastern Ohio. The orchard’s apple crop will be purchased by the Mid-Ohio Food Collective, a partnership that will see nearly 2.5 million pounds of fresh apples distributed to those in need. Yeary provides one quarter of those apples.

“When we started with food banks, a lot of the growers were just sending what they called their “garbage.” My husband always said that’s not right. So, when we found out about Mid-Ohio Food Collective and were able to work with them, we decided to give them better quality than they might’ve been getting before,” Owner of Yeary Orchards Betty Yeary said.

“Every day, we work to bring food into communities and into spaces where there isn’t enough. It’s what we do every day. During Hunger Action Month, we get to shout it from the rooftops and do that with folks like Betty and everybody at Yeary Orchards that really support us every day,” Director of Food Resource Development Victoria Brown said.

MOFC serves over 500,000 customers throughout Ohio, including right here in Muskingum County. After the apples are picked, washed, and bagged, MOFC drivers arrive at Yeary Orchards to collect bins of the fresh fruit, ready to be delivered to families across the area.

“It’s huge. Muskingum County is in our 20-county footprint. Mid-Ohio Food Collective is located in Columbus Ohio, within Franklin County. We serve all of the surrounding counties and many counties out east all the way to the river. Muskingum County’s one of those. To be able to buy beautiful apples from a local community member, then come back to our warehouse and sort them, then we redistribute back out to folks out in Muskingum County, that’s really precious. It’s important to us to be able to do that when those opportunities come,” Brown said.

As Hunger Action Month Continues, the dedication of Betty Yeary and her family’s partnership with the Mid-Ohio Food Collective highlights the great impact local farms can have in fighting hunger.

Yeary Orchards is located at 11195 Yeary Road in Adamsville.