SPI will provide vegetable seed to ensure that thousands of families and communities can grow their own food while following stay-at-home orders during the Coronavirus pandemic. In partnership locations like the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota USA, rural Guatemala, and South Sudan, hunger was ever present and will grow during the current recession. Unemployment and social distancing are driving massive interest in home gardening, and there's not enough home garden seed to go around.
COVID-19 is challenging the world's food security. In the US, amid unprecedented unemployment rates and stay home orders, gardening interest is peaking. Families want to grow healthy food at home. For those who can afford to buy seeds, some seed companies are already short on supply and unable to fulfill orders for home gardeners. In developing countries, the same is true: families used to growing their own food are finding it more difficult to access seeds or earn income to buy seeds.
For those at most risk of hunger and malnutrition, seed for home-based "resilience gardens" provides safe, essential nutrition. SPI secures non-GMO vegetable seed that will otherwise go to waste. We test and pack it for home and community use, then distribute it through partnerships. 10,000+ top-quality vegetable seed packets will go to groups like food banks, food programs at closed schools, mutual aid programs, neighborhood associations, women's groups, and refugee support agencies.
When SPI donors give generously, we can provide much more than just seed - we offer support for training, tools, soil improvement, and water access. These investments provide our partnerships, local leaders, and the communities they serve with greater knowledge and resources to be self-reliant. In some cases, we help people connect to local seed sources or save seed, eliminating future need for aid. Families that can meet their own food needs at home are strong and resilient to future stress.
