New Nonprofit 'Offer Kindness' Rescues Food and Feeds it to the Community

Food Insecurity in the Center of Agriculture

Fresno County is in the heart of the most productive agricultural region of the United States. Fresno also has a food insecurity rate of 15.9% — making it one of the highest in the state and the second-worst quartile nationally in Feeding America’s 2023 Map the Meal Gap study. This means that one in six people in the county don’t have access to healthy, affordable food at their local stores.

Despite this, 33.7% of what is harvested is lost before it even makes it to the market. That’s roughly an average of five tons of fresh produce per farm going to waste.

Harvesting the food that is left behind seems like an easy answer, but many farmers do not have the time or resources to coordinate recovery efforts on their own.

Gleaning as a Solution to Food Loss

Enter gleaning. Gleaning is the harvesting of crops that producers cannot or choose not to sell. Along with other donation channels, gleaning offers a remedy for on-farm food loss.

Since December 2025, the nonprofit organization Offer Kindness, run by Aleeza and Simon Berman, has been rescuing food from going to waste and distributing it to hungry neighbors. 

“It’s always been my belief that there are people in need and people with resources that are not being utilized. I had always wanted to find a niche where I could connect the two. When my wife and I moved to California, we found the abundance of fruit and food insecurity. As we grew into that space, we found out the astonishing amount of food going to waste due to the process or lack of resources. We are very thankful to meet the need with the wonderful resources available.” - Simon Berman, Co-Founder of Offer Kindness

In half a year, they’ve rescued over 250,000 pounds. However, they’ve also reached maximum capacity for their two-person team and current storage. They’ve done this through a network of devoted volunteers recovering food on farms, rescuing food from backyards, and distribution partnerships. 

“I was invited by Aleeza and Simon to change the world by giving to people in need… We step up, get out there, get that food, the fruit, and get it to the people and have fun while doing it.” - Derek, Offer Kindness Volunteer

Recovering Food On Farms

Bryce Loewen of Blossom Bluff Orchards is a unique example of how farms can integrate donations as part of their efforts to prevent food loss. They harvest later to ensure peak quality and flavor in their fruit. The downside is that while the fruit tastes great, some may be too ripe to pack for conventional markets.  

Blossom Bluff uses donations as one means to save their variety of tree fruits. Loewen utilizes some of their very ripe fruit by sun drying and dehydrating it, selling to large-scale processors like jam makers and breweries, and selling seconds directly to the community at a steep discount. Even with all these operational efficiencies, there’s still additional food to go around.

“That is where Offer Kindness comes in. On a weekly basis, [they] will come by the packing shed with their team of volunteer sorters to go through the peaches, plums, nectarines, mandarins, and whatever else we might have on a given week so that they can distribute this amazing, ripe fruit to the various charitable organizations that they have partnered with.”  - Bryce Loewen, Blossom Bluff Orchards

Rescuing Food From Backyards

Gleaning operations are also an opportunity for residential growers to give back through sharing their surplus fruit. Beverly, a homeowner who was helped through a backyard gleaning, said, “It’s quite hard to find someone to help pick the fruit for you. We have 25 trees, and they were loaded. I always say five trees for family and friends, and the rest for food banks. So we were glad to help people as much as we can.”

Distribution Partnerships

Darnice, both a partner and volunteer working with Offer Kindness, has helped provide fresh produce to over 150 people, many of whom are homebound or lack transportation. Darnice adds, “We’ve been getting a lot of positive feedback …It’s been a joy. I’ve been able to help Aleeza and her husband with this, and it’s touched a lot of lives. And I’m thankful and grateful for it.”

F3 Local’s Support

F3 Local’s Food Business Specialists have assisted Offer Kindness since February of this year with general business and marketing planning: through crafting their business mission statement, grant applications, and crowdfunding campaigns. Simon shared, “We had the opportunity to sit down for a business strategy meeting with Tara and other team members at F3 Local… Their help allowed us to grow from a small organization to a larger, more impactful organization to save more fruit and feed more people.”

How You Can Help

Whether it’s a donation of food, time, or funding, Offer Kindness is looking for ways to continue to scale their operation. Their main hurdle has been the sweltering summer heat and a lack of cold storage. Simon shared that  “With the cold storage, we would be able to collect more fruit and be able to hold it for longer… Giving us a lot more opportunities to distribute it to more places around Fresno.” Their other bottleneck is staffing and infrastructure; they need a building with cold storage, a refrigerated truck, and staff to help feed even more people throughout the Central Valley.

You can learn more about Offer Kindness and sign up to volunteer through their website at offerkindness.net