Fresh Connections Workplace Wellness Benefit
Fresh Connections was made possible through the generosity of an anonymous donor, the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation – Upper Valley Region, the Mascoma Savings Bank Foundation, and GRACE. Our sincere thanks to each of these funders.
The researcher’s evaluation is included in our Vital Communities Fresh Connections Report (17MG PDF), along with a description of the design and implementation of the project, its benefits and lessons learned from the pilot year. Handouts and a PowerPoint presentation are also included here for other groups who may be interested in replication.
Valley Food & Farm now has two years’ experience implementing our innovative “Fresh Connections” wellness benefit. Fresh Connections links businesses and their employees with local food and local agriculture through a variety of workplace activities.
Fresh Connections addresses many concerns, including employee wellness, supporting the local economy and keeping local agriculture viable. One of the biggest differences between Fresh Connections and other farm-related benefits is that Fresh Connections offers multiple components; these can be adapted to the needs of different employers based on their size, budget and desired outcomes.
An integral part of the project’s first year was working with a researcher from the Hood Center for Children and Families (associated with the Dartmouth Medical School and the Norris Cotton Cancer Center).
This past summer staff members of Hypertherm in Hanover and Centricut in West Lebanon were able to select from an array of fresh produce at weekly workplace "Produce Days." Associates could choose to get produce delivered at the work site throughout the harvest season by prepaying for a "farm share" from Your Farm of Fairlee, VT. Three different plans were offered so that workers had the option to select which produce they would receive in the deliveries. A worker who signed up for the weekly delivery told us,
"I just wanted to let you know how happy I am with the first week’s farm share. The produce was wonderful, very good quality and very fresh. It was very convenient being able to pick it up in the cafeteria."
Associates could also choose to shop at a weekly indoor farm stand set up at both Hypertherm and Centricut by Edgewater Farm of Plainfield, NH. A wide variety of vegetables and fruits were available for purchase during the hour-long farm stand, held during change of shift to make it convenient for more people to shop.
"I love the fact that they are coming to us. I was able to get some really great, fresh vegetables after work and take them home to make dinner. It is wonderfully convenient and much appreciated." commented one associate.
If you’re interested in implementing a Fresh Connections initiative at your workplace, or in other information about the project, please contact Melissa at 802-291-9100x105 or Melissa@vitalcommunities.org.