To Shawn Iles, assistant program director at religious nonprofit Interfaith Action of Evanston, the best part of his job is getting to know regulars at Produce Mobile — a free produce market that aims to serve low-income populations in Evanston. 

The Produce Mobile delivers 15 to 25-plus pounds of fresh produce per person on the second Tuesday of every month at Robert Crown Community Center. Co-hosted by IAE and the Greater Chicago Food Depository, the program relies on the help of organizers and volunteers like Iles. 

Cook County residents can either register for free onsite to get one GCFD pantry card per household or bring their pre-existing pantry cards if they’ve already registered. Numbered tickets are given at the walk-up line and volunteers are available to aid residents in carrying their produce to their vehicle.

“I’ve always had an interest in food insecurity,” Iles said. “This is actually the first thing I volunteered for when I moved (to Evanston).” 

The GCFD, an organization that identifies and serves areas impacted by food insecurity, operates about 40 produce mobiles around the Chicago area, and began partnering with IAE in 2012 to start one in Evanston. In 2023, the Evanston Produce Mobile served about 9,400 individuals with almost 100,000 pounds of produce, according to Mary Beth Roth, a site manager at IAE. 

“They came to the city and asked ‘would you like to have this’ and the city said ‘oh my, yes,’” Roth said. “The board said ‘we don’t know how to do this, but this needs to be done.’”

The GCFD donates half of the produce the Produce Mobile gives out, while the other half comes from wholesalers’ donations. All produce served through the program undergoes inspection by IAE’s volunteers, Roth said. 

15.3% of Cook County faced food insecurity in 2020, according to Feeding America. 

The city also provides composting services for the leftover produce, which IAE volunteer Dina Berne said was a recently enacted change. 

“If the food were perfect, it would be in the grocery store. It’s never perfect. But people are hungry. People need this food,” Roth said. “People who don’t have a lot of money, who would rather spend their money on rent, or medical bills or gas instead of this particular food — they will use that.” 

Roth joined IAE after she retired, and said she has been volunteering at the Produce Mobile since its inception and has never missed a distribution. 

Berne said she lives in Evanston and has always been interested in combating food insecurity in the area, and finds the Produce Mobile very fulfilling.

“You can donate to certain causes, but it’s great to actually have hands on,” Berne said. “This is like they’re going to the grocery store and getting fresh fruits and vegetables, not to eat on site, but to take home and prepare.”

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