NJAS is one of the oldest agricultural organizations of its kind in the nation, dating back to 1781. Today, the Society operates three programs: New Jersey Farmers Against Hunger (Facebook: NJ Farmers Against Hunger) is dedicated to collecting surplus fresh produce from farms, grocery stores and produce suppliers and delivering to community organizations serving those in need. Annually, FAH recove
rs 1.2 million lbs of fresh produce. FAH utilizes the help of over 1200 community volunteers, 50 donor farms/businesses, and 70+ feeding organizations. The program provides fresh produce free of charge to 7000 people in need weekly. Farmers statewide support the program, not only through regular donations of produce, but also through hosting fundraisers and informing their customers about our volunteer opportunities. Learning through Gardening (Facebook: Learning Through Gardening) is an affiliate program of National Agriculture in the Classroom. LTG provides New Jersey elementary schools with financial, educational and agricultural resources to create school gardens which are used as living-learning laboratories. Students learn about agriculture and how to make healthy food choices through classroom lessons centered around the garden.The program has educated over 20,000 students and trained over 870 teachers. The program grew significantly in the last year, accepting 12 new schools into its program. LTG currently provides materials and training to 29 New Jersey elementary schools. The New Jersey Agricultural Leadership Development Program (Facebook: New Jersey Agricultural Leadership Development Program - Class 9) is designed to provide educational programming for farmers and professionals in the agricultural industry. This two-year program provides leadership training with the goal of producing informed, articulate leaders. Since its inception, over 200 people have been trained and many have gone on to serve in local and state leadership roles on county boards, planning councils, etc. Through all three of these programs, NJAS educates the public about the agriculture and helps to preserve the Garden State for future generations.
