One organization is taking a hands-on approach to addressing food insecurity in Indiana by working alongside farmers. And it could use some more hands. The Society of St. Andrew organizes volunteers to glean, or gather, fruits and vegetables from farmers’ fields, often after the primary harvest, and from farmers’ markets. The crops are then donated to local food banks and pantries.

Dawn Barnes, Indiana regional director for the Society of St. Andrew, said volunteers are vital in making sure food gets to refugee communities, low-income neighborhoods, or wherever the need is greatest – and more people are needed to help.

“We will be out in the farmers’ fields beginning, really, in July, and there’s opportunities to come out and glean. It’s an opportunity to get to know your farmer, so we would love to get more people engaged in volunteering,” she said.

Barnes says about 40% of food never makes it to market, because farmers have either grown too much or are unable to sell it all. Volunteers are needed year-round, although the harvest season is busiest through October. The gleaners’ number one crop is apples, followed by corn and squash.

Through April of this year, the Society of St. Andrew has distributed more than 56,000 pounds of food. Barnes said no special skills are needed to be a gleaner. Most of the events are on weekend mornings and people of any age can participate, and added although there is no single cause of hunger, and addressing it takes a concerted effort.

“It takes the distribution from food banks, the local food pantries, and it takes organizations like ours that are filling in the gap,” she said.

The hunger relief organization Feeding America says in Indiana, almost 731,000 people face hunger, including 205,000 children. It would take almost $441 million to meet all their food needs, according to the organization.