The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Volunteers deliver dairy donations to pantries
LITCHFIELD — Cabot Creamery, part of the AgriMark Milk Cooperative, which is owned by dairy farmers from Connecticut, New York and the other New England states, has delivered quantities of yogurt, milk and other dairy products to food pantries throughout Connecticut.
Members of the Litchfield County 4-H and other volunteers distributed the donations. The effort, organizers said, is an expansion of an initial donation on April 22 and has continued, thanks to local volunteers.
A donation was brought to Litchfield High School April 29 at the high school loading dock; volunteers picked up the dairy products and brought them to designated food panties in Litchfield County.
Other donations were brought to Danbury High School where Fairfield County 4H will transport to food pantries in Fairfield County; and the Gemma E. Moran United Way/Labor Food Bank in New London, where the food bank will distribute to local pantries in New London County.
On April 4, 15 pallets of milk totaling 7,200 half-gallons from dairy cooperative Dairy Farmers of America, processed at the Guida’s Dairy facility in New Britain, were also donated to food pantries in Litchfield, Fairfield, New London, Windham, Hartford and Tolland counties.
Locally, milk was brought to the Community Kitchen of Torrington and other food pantries. Tony and Sons Seafood, owned by Scott and Sharon Demers, donated the truck and time to deliver the donated milk from Guida’s New Britain to the parking lot of Litchfield Community Center.
The donation drives were organized by Bill Davenport, a UConn Extension educator and County 4-H Program Coordinator. Davenport’s family owns and operates Tollgate Farm in Ancramdale, N.Y.
For information on the cooperative, visit www.agrimark.coop/
The effort, organizers said, is an expansion of an initial donation on April 22 and has continued, thanks to local volunteers.