On May 17th, dozens of volunteers will fan out across Ventura to harvest fresh surplus fruit from backyard fruit trees in the first annual Citrus Sunday, sponsored by Food Forward.  All of the harvest will be donated to local food pantries feeding our neighbors in need. Volunteers can either register for a pick organized by Food Forward or harvest their own trees in a Do It Yourself (DIY) pick using boxes and equipment provided by Food Forward.  After the event, Food Forward will host a picnic at their office at 77 N. California St. (Across from city hall)

“We are seeking fruit trees to harvest, and volunteers to participate,” said Jim Mangis, Food Forward’s Ventura County Branch Manager. “This will be a great day of food rescue, fellowship, and sharing. Citrus, kumquats, vegetables, are all perfect foods for our program. “

Volunteers, and fruit donors can sign up at foodforward.org or by calling 630-2728.   DIY(Do it Yourself) Pick participants can pick up boxes to fill with fruit prior to the event and then drop off once they have collected fruit. For more information, and pick up and drop off locations contact [email protected].

Food Forward is a non-profit organization that organizes volunteers to harvest fresh, local produce that would otherwise go to waste, connecting this abundance with people in need. 3,600 volunteers have harvested over 9,000,000 pounds of fruit since 2009.