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Get Fresh Vegetables Each Week for $12 at Bed-Stuy's Community Garden

 The Fresh Food Box program returns to 462 Halsey Community Garden this June, with a $12 deal for an assortment of fruits and vegetables each week.
The Fresh Food Box program returns to 462 Halsey Community Garden this June, with a $12 deal for an assortment of fruits and vegetables each week.
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GrowNYC

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — You won’t have to break the bank or leave Brooklyn to get farm-fresh produce this season.

GrowNYC is teaming up with 462 Halsey Community Garden for the fourth year of its Fresh Food Box program, an initiative offering weekly bags of locally-grown fruits and vegetables.

Each $12 haul has between seven to 10 different items, with salad greens such as baby spinach, cooking greens like kale or collards, garlic or onions, and other seasonal produce, organizers said.

“It’s one of the best ways people can get local, organic or naturally grown healthy food that’s affordable, and the garden itself is a great resource for people in the neighborhood,” said Alice Forbes Spear, founding member of 462 Halsey Community Garden.

Up to 100 people utilize the program each season at the space on Halsey Street near Lewis Avenue, according to organizers.

During the winter, GrowNYC’s Fresh Food Box program is available at nearby Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church.

More than 20 other sites in Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan, and The Bronx also participate in the produce initiative, which sources its goods from farms throughout the state, said Fresh Food Box Program Coordinator Nicole Tucker.

Participants sign up for their box the week before pick-up, and can get their fruits and vegetables at the garden every Saturday beginning this June.

Each haul comes with up to four recipes for the ingredients, as well as a newsletter detailing where the produce originated.

Depending on the season, customers can get between 10 to 15 pounds of fruits and vegetables — an estimated value of $25 if they purchased it at a supermarket, Tucker said.

Unlike a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, which can cost participants up to $500, the initiative doesn’t require long-term commitment, Forbes Spear said.

In addition, the Halsey Street garden will offer its own farmers' market in late June.

Gardeners at the 600-square-foot community space grow a range of items, including tomatoes, peppers, broccoli, cucumbers, beets and strawberries.

Organizers are also looking to raise $4,500 for a new irrigation system for the garden with a new shed, water storage and solar-powered lights.

The GrowNYC Food Box program returns to 462 Halsey on June 4. For more information on registering, visit the garden’s website here.