Real Food CT and Community Efforts
While national headlines focus on the government shutdown and budget disputes, most people in Connecticut don’t realize the impact this could have on thousands of families who rely on SNAP to help put food on the table. The Connecticut Department of Social Services has warned that if the shutdown continues, November SNAP benefits could be delayed or reduced. That means more neighbors facing uncertainty about how to feed their families, and more pressure on the local food system to step up.
The Harvest Is Still Coming In
For those of us working close to the ground, the timing could not be more real. At Real Food CT, our fields are still producing. Just last week our team and volunteers harvested nearly ten thousand pounds of winter squash, apples, bok choy, and fall greens. The season is not over, and neither is the need. Our farm partners continue to open their fields to ensure that every healthy crop grown in Connecticut can end up feeding people rather than going to waste.
Each time we load boxes of fresh food into our trucks, we are reminded that resilience starts locally. When national systems get shaky, local communities can still act. The connection between farms, food pantries, and volunteers becomes the bridge that keeps people nourished when federal safety nets are uncertain.
A Community Food Drive for Real Food
This weekend, that bridge grows a little stronger. On Sunday, November 2, from 9 to 2, Cub Scout Pack 270 will host a Real Food Drive at Stop and Shop in Newtown. They are focusing on shelf stable vegetables like sweet potatoes, onions, and apples, as well as canned fruits and vegetables such as cranberries, corn, and carrots.
Food pantries have also asked for kitchen essentials that many of us take for granted — can openers, knives, peelers, and pans — to help families prepare the meals they receive. These small tools often make the biggest difference between food sitting on a shelf and food being cooked and enjoyed.
Local Action Builds Resilience
Every one of us can help. A quick conversation with a local pantry director can answer any question about what is most needed right now. You can organize your own Real Food Drive, join one of our gleaning crews in the coming weeks, or donate to support fuel and logistics that keep food moving from fields to families.
As SNAP benefits remain uncertain, the larger truth is that a healthy community depends on more than federal policy. It depends on local care, coordination, and shared effort. Each gleaning, each food drive, each volunteer hour builds the kind of food security that Washington cannot legislate into existence.
We believe that fresh, nutrient dense food is not a privilege but a foundation of public health. When you eat real food, grown close to home, you build resilience in your own body and in your community.
Join Us
As we move through this season of uncertainty, let’s stay grounded in action. The harvest is still coming in, the need is still growing, and the solutions are still right here in our hands.
If you would like to join a gleaning, volunteer with your group, or host a Real Food Drive in your town, reach out to our Communications Director Jessi Ruotolo at jessi@realfoodct.org. Check out our volunteering and events calendar here for more ways to help. Need Food? Click HERE for food resources and a list of pantries we donate to regularly. Together we can keep real food flowing to every table that needs it.
