Massachusetts
Concord farm donates all the produce it grows to fight food insecurity in Massachusetts
One Concord farm is helping to combat food insecurity in Massachusetts by donating all of its produce.
Gaining Ground, a 35-year-old, no-till organic farm, doesn’t sell a single fruit or vegetable. Every harvest is donated to people facing food insecurity across Massachusetts.
“We have never sold a single fruit or vegetable,” said Jennifer Johnson, executive director of Gaining Ground. “We have given away everything we grow. We’re exclusively dedicated to food insecurity.”
They said they measure their success, not in sales, but in what they give away to communities in the state.
Helping over 10,000 people across Massachusetts
Their food reaches more than 10,000 people in 41 cities and towns across Greater Boston, Lowell, and the MetroWest area. And the need continues to grow.
In Massachusetts, food insecurity has more than doubled since the pandemic, now affecting one in five households. Rising inflation has made it even harder for many families to afford fresh, healthy food.
“I’m a firm believer that access to nutritious food, the kind you need to live a healthy life, is a human right. Full stop,” Johnson said.
Volunteers and staff grow familiar crops like tomatoes, broccoli, and lettuce, but also more culturally specific ones like Brazilian eggplant, Asian greens, and a wide variety of hot peppers.
“We really consider it a gift to be able to give this food to people so that it can nourish them both in body and soul,” said Johnson.
One of the farm’s longtime partners is House of Hope, a family shelter in Lowell. The organization serves three meals a day to around 200 people, with much of the produce coming from Gaining Ground.
“I’ve been a chef for years,” said Paul Dubuque, who works at House of Hope. “If this produce was going to a restaurant, you’d be paying a lot of money for it.”
In 2024 alone, Gaining Ground donated 139,000 pounds of produce. That’s enough for more than 650,000 servings. For many, it’s not just about nutrition; it’s about dignity.
“When people receive Gaining Ground food, they tell us that they have the dignity of being seen as equals,” said Johnson.
Long-term sustainability
The farm is also committed to long-term sustainability. By using no-till methods and organic practices, they protect the microbial life in the soil. That’s one key to growing nutrient-rich food.
“Good farmers grow vegetables and great farmers grow soil,” Johnson said.
“The fungi and bacteria in the soil take the nutrients and transform them the compounds into a readily accessible compound for the plants,” said Mark Condon, Director of Agriculture at Gaining Ground.
That makes the plants stronger, the food more nutritious, and the land more resilient… especially as the climate changes.
“No-till really assists when we have a lot of rain or a drought,” Condon said. “The soil can act as a sponge to absorb or a great filtration for too much water.”
From farm to food pantry, and soil health to human health, Gaining Ground is growing a lot more than vegetables. To learn more or get involved with Gaining Ground, click here.
Massachusetts
Weather alert for patchy fog and black ice in 9 Massachusetts counties until Friday morning
A report was issued from the National Weather Service on Friday at 3:13 a.m. for patchy fog and black ice until 9 a.m. for Northern Worcester and Southern Worcester as well as Franklin, Middlesex, Essex, Hampshire, Hampden, Norfolk, Suffolk, Bristol and Plymouth counties.
“Patchy fog and isolated black ice are possible this morning across southern New England, especially in areas that typically fog over. As temperatures are at or below freezing, a few slick patches of black ice may form, especially on elevated surfaces; like bridges and overpasses. Please use caution heading out early this morning and allow for extra commuting time,” according to the weather service.
Navigating fog: Safety tips by the weather service
If you must drive in foggy conditions, keep the following safety tips in mind:
Moderate your speed:
- Slow down and allocate extra time for your trip to reach your destination safely.
Visibility priority:
- Ensure your vehicle is visible to others by using low-beam headlights, which automatically activate your taillights. Utilize fog lights if your vehicle is equipped with them.
Avoid high-beams:
- Refrain from using high-beam headlights, as they create glare that impairs your visibility on the road.
Keep a safe distance:
- Maintain a significant following distance to account for abrupt stops or shifts in traffic patterns.
Stay in your lane:
- Use the road’s lane markings as a guide to remaining in the correct lane.
Zero visibility strategy:
- In cases of near-zero visibility due to dense fog, activate your hazard lights and seek a safe spot, like a nearby business parking lot, to pull over and stop.
No parking options:
- If no designated parking area is available, pull your vehicle as far off the road as possible. Once stationary, deactivate all lights except the hazard flashers, engage the emergency brake, and release the brake pedal to ensure your tail lights remain unlit, minimizing the chance of other drivers colliding with your stationary vehicle.
By adhering to these precautions from the weather service, you can navigate foggy conditions more safely, reducing the likelihood of accidents and ensuring your personal safety.
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Massachusetts
Supermarket chain to open 2 stores in former Christmas Tree Shops, Big Lots locations in Massachusetts
Two shuttered retailers are set to become supermarkets in southeastern Massachusetts.
Big Y announced Thursday that it’s opening grocery stores in Fairhaven and North Dartmouth. The Fairhaven Plaza location used to be a Big Lots, and the Faunce Corner Center store in North Dartmouth was a Christmas Tree Shops.
“These new stores will allow us to better serve families in the South Coast region,” Big Y VP of real estate and development Mathieu L. D’Amour said in a statement.
The supermarkets will open sometime in 2027. Hiring details and a grand opening date will be announced in the next few months. Big Y opened new stores in Westboro and Uxbridge earlier this year.
Big box store closures in Massachusetts and around the country in recent years have created opportunities for other retailers to move into vacant storefronts.
Christmas Tree Shops, the bargain outlet that started on Cape Cod more than 50 years ago, went bankrupt and closed all of its stores in 2023. The old North Dartmouth location is being used temporarily this holiday season as a “Spirit Christmas” pop-up.
Another Christmas Tree Shops in Falmouth has been transformed into an Aldi supermarket. Others have been taken over by Ocean State Job Lot.
Big Lots closed all of its Massachusetts stores last year amid financial turmoil. Just last month, an Ollie’s Bargain Outlet moved into a former Big Lots location in Fitchburg.
It hasn’t always worked out for supermarkets that move into old retail stores. The Fresh Market, which moved into an old Bed Bath & Beyond store on Route 9 in Framingham less than a year ago, is already closing.
A competing grocery store chain, Trader Joe’s, opened two new stores in Newton and West Roxbury this fall.
BOSTON, MA — It was a major day for Boston’s culinary scene on Tuesday as one of the city’s restaurants was finally awarded a Michelin star.
In total, it appears that 26 restaurants were honored by the Michelin Guide.
311 Omakase in the city’s South End was awarded the star at the Michelin Guide Northeast Cities Ceremony, which was held at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts in Philadelphia.
The Japanese restaurant known for its sushi offerings won the biggest honor of the night, but 26 Boston-area restaurants were also noted at the ceremony.
According to NBC Boston, Bar Volpe and Fox & The Knife, both in Boston; Sumiao Hunan Kitchen, Pagu and Jahunger in Cambridge and Mahaniyom in Brookline were recognized in the “Bib Gourmand” category, which is awarded for its value for the money spent.
Boston Business Journal shared that a number of other area spots were recognized by the organization for their culinary products, though they were not awarded a star.
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