Author: Annika

Wow. A few weeks have gone by since our Launch Party and we’re now fresh off hosting our inaugural HUBweek event ‘Innovating the Commonwealth’s Food Economy’ with Commonwealth Kitchen. We’re still having a hard time processing all of the of love and high energy that went into those events. Neither words nor punny thank you’s can express the gratitude we have for everyone who came out and supported us and our community of partners. It means so much to us and to the communities we serve.

Your support over these last months has advanced our mission of driving food, health and community across our neighborhoods all over the city. We’re trading in our dress clothes for flannels and hitting the road to put your support to work, but we still want you to stay connected:

• If you didn’t get a chance to attend our events you can still show some love by donating to Fresh Truck or our friends at Commonwealth Kitchen
• Book Fresh Truck for your next community health event or corporate wellness program
  Hit us up to volunteer on the truck
• Follow our schedule and come buy some fresh food (yes, we’re going to be out all winter)

We mean it when we say our reach across Boston would not be as wide without your continued support and donations. It really does take two to “mango”, what we do just isn’t possible without you. Had to get one pun in there 😉

Tons of love,
The whole Fresh Truck Fam

It’s going to be bananas.

Get your tickets now!

In anticipation of our upcoming launch party, we’re celebrating all the wonderful people and partners who helped make our growth and expansion over the last year possible. First up in the FT spotlight is Boston Medical Center HealthNet Plan, or BMCHP for short. They’ve been with us from the beginning and they were our first major contributor after our Kickstarter campaign, helping us establish relationships with a city-wide network of health centers and other community health partners.

Together, we have hosted cooking demonstrations, nutrition education workshops, and community health block parties. In addition, BMCHP was the first organization to officially sign on to support our Veggie RX program, a program they were instrumental in helping us develop, and which saw remarkable success in its pilot run.

“BMCHP afforded us the opportunity to take risks as a young non-profit. Their early stage support has been foundational to our success and growth.” – Founder and Executive Director Josh Trautwein

Our partnership with BMCHP has already helped us serve 1,000+ families across the city at 15 events yielding over $10,000 in sales. We’re excited to see what the future has in store, and we are extremely grateful for the role they played in our development as a young non-profit.

We’re revving up our engines and hitting the road again—this time with valuable new partnerships, programs and a completely re’freshed’ look! This re-launch will be part of our renewed effort to play a critical role in Boston’s healthcare ecosystem, ensuring all Boston families have access to a reliable source of fresh nutritious food.

Providing access to nutritious food has always been the focus here at Fresh Truck, but it’s only a part of our overall mission as an organization. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts has signed on to back us as a community impact partner, providing funding and strategic support within the healthcare sector. Boston Medical Center HealthNet Plan has committed funding in addition to supporting community outreach and the pilot of our Vegetable Prescription Program. Nate Solder, offensive tackle with the New England Patriots, is championing Fresh Truck as the newest add to our board of directors. Rounding out all of our big news we’ll be rolling out a new addition to our #freshfleet!

Our retrofitting partner, Building Restoration Services, is hard at work on retrofitting bus two, which will work in partnership with our community health network to host pop-up markets, cooking demos and other food-focused health activities. Our Weekly Market  will begin in October, with ‘Fresh Stops’ in South Boston, Dorchester, Mattapan, Charlestown and East Boston, with more stops to be announced soon.

To celebrate the launch, we are hosting an event at our new base of operations Coppersmith Boston on October 1. Guests will have the opportunity to meet the Fresh Truck team, network with our supporters and hear more about what is next for Boston’s favorite fruit bus. This event is open to the public; tickets are $25 and cover food, drinks supplied by Harpoon Brewery and Coppersmith, live music, and tours of both Fresh Truck buses. More information about the event can be found here.

With all our new partnerships, programs, and a new set of wheels, the Fresh Truck launch promises to be fruitful in every sense of the word!

Global Entrepreneurship Week at Northeastern serves as a celebration of the school’s hard working entrepreneurial eco-system. We were thrilled to bring the bus out to the Kickoff reception on Monday night featuring recipes by CAMD student Madeline Heising the extraordinary author of The Collegiate Vegan. Despite the storm outside we had a great time giving away ingredients, giving tours of the bus and answering questions. Josh even had the chance to follow up Dean Courtney and share the Fresh Truck story including how the entrepreneurial resources at Northeastern have been critical to our growth and success.

Our involvement with GEW continued on Thursday when we joined our venture peers at NEXPO, IDEA’s semi-annual entrepreneurship showcase. The event drew over 600 attendees that were curious and passionate about Northeastern student companies. It was a great opportunity for us to get in touch with our roots by giving out apples, talking with other ventures and hearing from stakeholders in the startup community. We were also honored to be listed as one of 6 Startups That Stood Out at NEXPO by Bostinno. NEXPO is always a great event and this year it was bigger and livelier than ever!