The company donated the land and fronted money and resources, while employees provide the labor. Three days a week after work, when most people are heading home for the night, nearly two-thirds of the company’s employees head to the garden to pull weeds, hoe the pumpkin patch and pick vegetables. They’re rewarded with organic produce to take home home; leftovers are donated to local food banks.
Haberman & Associates employees enjoy fresh vegetables from the company-sponsored organic garden. Photo Courtesy Haberman & Associates.
Haberman & Associates started the garden as a way to walk in the shoes of some of their clients in the sustainable agriculture and organic food industry, and now the firm hopes company-sponsored organic vegetable gardens will take root in other parts of the country. These gardens offer a low-cost benefit at a time when many businesses are cutting employee benefit packages, and they also enhance employee health by sending workers home with nutritious, organic food, provide a way to relax after work and promote bonding between employees.
The company-sponsored organic vegetable garden is similar to community supported agricultural programs, or CSAs. By involving businesses, they bring the importance of nutritious, organic food out of the home and into the workforce, making healthy eating a corporate matter as well as a personal one.
by Robyn Griggs Lawrence, Editor-in-Chief
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