- Video shows Laborers of the Harvest’s Executive Director Shari Rightmer preparing for the grand opening of their second Open Harvest location in Arvin.
- The ribbon cutting ceremony will take place on Saturday, Oct. 14 at 1 p.m.
Laborers of the Harvest are getting ready to open their second Open Harvest location in the city of Arvin this Saturday. Laborers of the Harvest’s Executive Director Shari Rightmer said unlike other food banks, the Open Harvest Fresh Food Program offers its members a unique experience.
“It’s the same food that you would get from grocery stores it’s just that the food has hit its sell by date, or its best used by date,” Rightmer explained.
She added that for $30 a month, members get to enjoy up to 3 bags of fresh food. "You can come and go shopping, up to eight times per month,” she said. “You get three bags that you get to fill up with anything that works for you and your family.”
In accordance with California's new SB1383 law, Open Harvest offers fresh food recovered from local grocery stores like Vallarta Supermarkets. She says that the Laborers of the Harvest’s goal is to prevent food from being thrown away.
“The new law is going to be implemented starting January 2024,” Rightmer stated. “It will be illegal for grocery stores to throw those foods away and so we’re just kind of ahead of the game a little bit and what we do is not only recover the food but then we bring it to our Open Harvest markets.”
The ribbon cutting ceremony will be this Saturday, October 14 at 1 in the afternoon. Some of the special guests attending the ceremony include Arvin's Mayor Olivia Trujillo and Assembly Qoman Jasmeet Bains. The guest of honor will be Supervisor David Couch.
“Supervisor David Couch has always been a big supporter of Laborers of the Harvest and of me personally,” Rightmer said. “He’s always championed what we have been doing, for eight years I guess, especially the last four years and food recovery for us.”
Rightmer says that the Laborers of the Harvest hope to open more Open Harvest locations in the future.
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