WELLFLEET – A Community Food Share Program has been developed by Wellfleet Shellfish Promotion and Tasting (SPAT) in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Restaurants and retail locations across the area are closing and reducing hours due to the outbreak, which has led to a drop in shellfish sales according to Executive Director of the organization Michele Insley.
“The world has changed quite a bit, and because of this current health crisis, the regular supply lines have just evaporated,” Insley said.
This new program, Insley explained, is meant to offer relief to the shellfishermen of Wellfleet as well as families having trouble during the pandemic.
SPAT will be buying fresh oysters and clams from the men and women who harvest them, and the products will then be taken to a distribution facility. From there, the food will be processed and given to local community kitchens and served for free to those in need.
Insley calls the program a “win-win for the community.”
“It felt really good for SPAT to be able to mobilize immediately and make a difference,” she continued, “not only with our shellfishermen, and then in the greater community.”
Over 50 harvesters have signed up for the program to this point, according to Insley. Big Rock Oyster Company in Harwich, Holbrook Oyster in Wellfleet, and Wellfleet Shellfish Company in Eastham have also all joined in on the initiative.
The Faith Family Kitchen in Hyannis, the AIDS Support Group of Cape Cod in Provincetown, and Mac’s Kitchen in Eastham have volunteered to serve the food to residents, Insley said.
For more information, visit Wellfleet SPAT’s website by clicking here.