ELLICOTT CITY, Md. — It's a warm, sunny morning at Little Portion Farm. Staff and volunteers are working on the three-acre farmland, which is nestled on the massive grounds of the Shrine of St. Anthony.
"Our mission is mainly two-fold," said Matt Jones, the farm manager. "To care for our land and grow food for those in need."
For a small farm, they grow quite a bit of produce. Jones said since 2019, they've harvested and donated 75,000 pounds of food.
"We donate 100% of the food, we're not selling any of it," Jones said.
Almost all of the food they grow and harvest goes to the soup kitchen at the Franciscan Center, which works with the vulnerable population of Baltimore. Jones said they work with the center's culinary team to decide what produce to plant for their menus.
On this particular day, Little Portion Farm was giving the Franciscan Center onions, garlic, squash, tomatoes, peppers, okra and cucumbers.
Once the produce is picked up, it is taken to the center and used almost immediately, said culinary director Chef Derrick Purcell.
"It doesn't get more farm to table than that," he said.
They used this particular haul of fresh food in a beef and beet Borscht soup and a salad to feed the hundreds who will come to the center for lunch and dinner. Purcell said their focus is serving nutritious and fresh meals and educating their clients about what they're putting in their bodies.
"It feels good when you see people come and taste the food and we get to educate them on what we’re serving," Purcell said. "They may not have tasted turnips before or roasted beets, let alone fresh beets."
Both Little Portion Farm and the Franciscan Center rely heavily on donations to do their work. They are having a joint fundraiser on Saturday Oct. 14 at the Shrine of St. Anthony called Wine at the Shrine.
There will be wine and beer tastings, food trucks, live music, activities for kids and tours of the farm. For ticket information, click here.
