Dec
29
With less green coming from the state, nonprofit turns to greens
Filed Under single stories, social services |
Originally published in The Palm Beach Post on Saturday, Dec. 29, 2007.
By KATHLEEN CHAPMAN
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
INDIANTOWN - Tired of facing tight state budgets for people with disabilities, one local nonprofit is trying an unconventional method of raising money: bibb and romaine lettuce.
Fred Eisinger, who heads Seagull Industries for the Disabled in Riviera Beach, has done all the usual money makers: thrift stores, golf tournaments, charity luncheons. But all of those together bring in about $50,000 a year, not enough to run his residential and work programs for adults with disabilities such as Down syndrome.
So Eisinger began eyeing Seagull Ranch, a 20-acre plot the charity owns in Indiantown. And he decided to start farming.
This month, Seagull delivered 250 heads of lettuce to its first client, The Breakers resort in Palm Beach. Seagull earns $2 a head, which it will use to pay for its programs.
The deal also benefits The Breakers, which is helping to lead a local movement to reduce greenhouse gases by buying food that does not have to be trucked long distances. The hotel’s goal is to serve fruits and vegetables on the same day they were picked.
“The Breakers strives to source the absolute finest quality ingredients from carefully selected cottage purveyors and boutique farms — which includes fresh, locally grown products,” spokeswoman Ann Margo Peart said.
Eisinger didn’t expect his career would lead him into boutique farming. He has no experience in agriculture, other than the six months he spent picking fruit on an Israeli kibbutz. But earlier this year, the state capped the amount of money it would spend on services for individuals with disabilities, cutting further into a budget that he says has not kept pace with inflation.
“All of my ideas come from desperation,” he said.
The agency bought Seagull Ranch several years ago and uses it as a home for six adults with disabilities. But the homes cover less than an acre.
Seagull rents part of the land to 1960s teen idol Davy Jones, the former lead singer of the Monkees who now lives in Indiantown. Jones keeps his horses on the ranch and has performed for the residents, Eisinger said.
But with state support lagging, Eisinger needed a way to make serious cash.
“If the governor doesn’t want to pay me, somebody’s going to,” he said.
Eisinger hopes his mentally disabled clients might eventually help plant or harvest the crops. But his goal right now is simple: make a lot of money.
He hopes the plan could eventually net $250,000 a year, which Seagull could use to help meet its annual costs of more than $2.5 million.
Art Kirstein, agricultural economic development coordinator for the Palm Beach County Cooperative Extension Service, thinks that is an achievable goal. He has thrown himself into the project, teaching Eisinger’s facility director, Raymond Parry, how to run a farm.
Kirstein suggested that they farm lettuce, one of the most profitable crops because it takes only 30 to 45 days to grow. He advised that they farm it hydroponically — without soil.
He taught Parry how to rig up wooden boxes filled with nutrient-rich water. The lettuce floats over the water beds on a piece of Styrofoam. Parry cuts the lettuce at dawn, when it is crispiest, and delivers it to The Breakers two hours later.
The floating garden is clean; there is no soil to get the leaves dirty or attract pests, so the plants rarely need to be sprayed. Parry wears antiseptic gloves when he harvests the lettuce.
“These plants are not touched by human hands,” Kirstein said.
The system is also cheap. All of the parts — lumber, plastic sheeting and Styrofoam — can be purchased at Home Depot, Kirstein said. One sale of lettuce pays the start-up costs. Everything else is profit.
Kirstein is working with Geoff Sagrans, assistant director of materials management for The Breakers, on a “farm-to-plate” alliance. The plan is still in its infancy but will connect chefs at hotels, restaurants and country clubs with local growers. Ultimately, the alliance will advocate for other environmental issues, such as reuse of cooking oils and alternate forms of energy.
Employees from The Breakers are already asking Seagull to grow more boutique vegetables.
And on the ranch in Indiantown, the first sprigs of arugula are just starting to sprout.
Copyright 2007 The Palm Beach Newspapers, Inc.
Palm Beach Post (Florida)
December 29, 2007 Saturday
FINAL EDITION
SECTION: A SECTION; Pg. 1A
LENGTH: 700 words