Growing Food for Vermont's Hungry

Our Mission:
Please help us grow even more food for the VT Foodbank and Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf!

Since 2009, we have grown and given away a diverse and ample array of produce - such as strawberries, raspberries, bell peppers, tomatoes, cabbage, winter squash and potatoes - to help feed hungry Vermonters.

We want to grow even more  in 2017 and we need your help!

Video from our first food bank harvest


"While the Siegchrists have been donating to us for years, with this campaign Barber Farm has rededicated itself to the mission that no one in Vermont goes hungry. We are grateful to Barber Farm for this new level of partnership and support."
- John Sayles, Vermont Foodbank CEO

Who We Are:
We are Jean and Charlie Siegchrist, owners of the Barber Farm. We ran a fruit and vegetable business from 1979 - 1989. Now we're using the farm to grow food for people who need it the most.

Public radio story about growing for the food bank

What We Are Asking For:
We are asking for contributions to help purchase seed and fertilizer to grow potatoes, winter squash and  cabbage.

We also need seed and fertilizer for soil improvement of acreage for use in future years.  

We are donating the use of our land, machinery and time toward the project.

How We Grow:
The crop will be organically grown, with no synthetic fertilizer, weed or pest control. Healthy crops come from healthy soil, which gives sustainability to the farm. We are committed to long-term farm improvements and a long-term plan of growing for the hungry.

We prepare ground for ensuing years by sowing and incorporating successive plantings of buckwheat. This crop smothers weeds, adds tons of organic matter and has the capability of unlocking nutrients in the soil for use by food crops next year. As a side benefit, buckwheat is a favored crop for honeybees.


We will work with Salvation Farms to help harvest and distribute the food.  "It inspires us at Salvation Farms to see Charlie maintaining a century old legacy of producing food at Barber Farm to feed those in its extended community. It is an honor for us to be associated with this historic farm and to be a part of the writing of its newest history,” said Salvaltion Farms director Theresa Snow.

The Impact:
In 2016 we donated 13,000 pounds of food; this coming summer we expect to surpass that with increased acreage and, hopefully, more normal rainfall.

Your contribution will go directly toward helping feed some of the 24,000 Vermont children classed as food insecure. 

What You'll Get:
The joy of supporting a project that feeds  community members in need.

Follow us on Facebook to see our progress through the seasons.

Thank you so much.
Charlie & Jean Siegchrist