A Single Bite to reopen Catskills Food Hub

Facility will expand ASB’s nutrition goals

By Jack Dusenbury-Dalto | Manor Ink

Liberty, NY – If you’ve ever wondered how many families in Sullivan County can’t afford sufficient food, well, that number is nearly ten percent of all households. Those families lack financial or other resources to reliably access enough food to live an active, healthy life. And over eighteen percent of the county’s children are not getting the nourishment they need to grow and thrive.

These are alarming statistics, especially for a county located in a wealthy state like New York. 

A Single Bite is working to change those stats. They prepare healthy meals for over one hundred local families and offer a free, four-part “real food” education program in every school district in the county.

A nonprofit founded by Livingston Manor native Sims Foster and his wife and business partner Kirsten Harlow Foster, A Single Bite was organized around the premise that young people who are educated consumers have a better chance for a healthy future. Today, ASB provides free nutritious meals, and their Real Food Education Program reaches 750 Sullivan County middle school students each year, teaching them to care about the food they eat and to know where it comes from. 

And now, A Single Bite has added the Catskills Food Hub to its operations. 

After installing a kitchen and other new equipment in the Food Hub building on Commerce Drive, ASB will fully relocate to the Liberty site. The Food Hub will then work to improve school meals in Sullivan County by delivering healthy produce to cafeterias, and will distribute additional donated produce to food pantries.

“We didn’t have the space to do that before,” Sara Hazelnis, ASB director of operations, remarked. “We are able to help pantries get more fresh food by distributing donated produce so that even more people can have access to healthy food. Today, we’re feeding about 135 families across our county, which is about 1,000 square miles. This expansion will allow us to work with more community partners to reach even more families in need. And, we are supporting farm-to-school programs so the children of those families have healthier options when they’re at school.”

Essentially, at the new facility, ASB will help increase the amount and quality of fresh produce at local food pantries, on Sullivan County school menus and on working families’ tables. 

To support ASB’s efforts, you can volunteer or make a donation. You can also request food assistance. Call 845-482-1030 or visit asinglebite.org for more information.

“Adding the Catskills Food Hub to our operations enables us to expand our current family meal and education programs and become an essential part of Sullivan County’s food economy by including local food distribution to our core mission,” said co-founder Sims Foster, chairperson of the organization’s newly formed board of directors.