Wilton's Fink Foundation Helps to Nourish the Needy

An oasis of fruits and vegetables has sprouted in Bridgeport’s Marina neighborhood, once a food desert. 

Indeed change has blossomed in the town's under-served neighborhoods because of The Wholesome Wave Foundation. Founded in 2007, the non-profit market stands to sustain neglected neighborhoods both physically and fiscally.

“It’s about restoring a sense of community through all walks of life,” said Michel Nischan, president and CEO of the Wholesome Wave Foundation and chef of Westport’s Dressing Room restaurant.  “Our thing has been to get the food moving in one direction, just get on the ground.  Few non-profits actually put raw products in the hands of the people.”

Seed funding from Wilton’s Betsy & Jesse Fink Foundation helped Nischan launch the non-profit.  He now has 19 non-profit partners across the country.

When the farm stands opened, it meant new jobs; market stands needed managing.  It also meant vulnerable families had access to healthier food choices; diabetes and obesity could be curbed.

Until the farm stands popped up, many people had no choice but to shop at convenience stores. Now, four days a week during market season, Bridgeport residents can buy farm fresh goods outside St. Vincent’s Hospital or deep within the Marina neighborhood.

Next year fruits and vegetables should be available off-season in a food pantry, Nischan said. Because stands need staffing, more jobs will come to these neighborhoods.

Writer and producer Chris Taylor recently screened his new documentary ‘Food Fight’ at the Wilton Library.  Taylor strongly supports changing the way Americans eat, one forkful at a time.

 “Good food is a requirement for everyone.  The fact that we’re conscious about the food supply is important,” said Taylor.

However, the food supply remains blocked for many.  According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, 49 million Americans don’t have consistent access to decent food. In other words, one in four children go hungry.

One-third of these people have low food security, meaning meals skipped and portions skimmed.  The rest, about 36 million Americans, rely on food pantries and food stamps.

“People without jobs are the first to go for food assistance. Used to be able to feed families better than now,” Nischan said.

In Connecticut, 8.2 percent of the population depends on some means of food aid. That’s 40 percent more people on food assistance than in 2008. 

Enter Wholesome Wave’s “Nourishing Neighborhoods.” It has three farm-to-community pilot programs: Double Value Coupon Program, Neighborhood Farm Stand Program and Market Box Nutrition Program.

In 2008 the Double Value Coupon Program started in three states and eight farmers' markets.  It has since expanded to 10 states, the District of Columbia and 55 farmers' markets with 19 non-profit partners.

As an operating foundation, Wholesome Wave depends on partnerships in communities where like-minded organizations can help run the "Nourishing Neighborhoods" programs.

“When you look at it [serving the under-served] from the outside it’s daunting,” Taylor said. “We need the political will power to make resources available. You need the right person to lead that effort and that’s the area we have the most hope.”

In Wilton, Millstone Farm has joined Wholesome Wave’s fight to bring sustenance to suffering neighborhoods. It has also linked with City Farmer, which wants to create sustainable food systems for the Big Apple.

Nischan, the grandson of farmers, has worked in a white cloth restaurant for decades. Still he has always appreciated that hundreds of thousands of people can’t choose their food.

“There are literally wide swaths of America where people can’t say I’m going to buy fresh food. They have no choice,” Nischan said.

Wholesome Wave works because it isn’t a hunger relief organization, Nischan said.  It supports farmers who otherwise might have no market for their produce.  And, because people are buying and working at the stands, money is reinvested in the community.

Economics aside, the program benefits the environment.  There is less food on the move.  Enlisting local farmers has reduced the average ‘food miles’ traveled.  Now produce is grown for taste and not for how well it ships.

Some critics argue that only elitists can enjoy fresh food and farmers markets.

“You cannot deny that there is an elitists' component to this, but I say welcome to the table,” Taylor said. “Every social movement cannot succeed without representation from every rung on the social ladder.”