Grey Bears Joins Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust Community Seafood Program
Partnership brings sustainable, nutrient-rich seafood to support Grey Bears' food distribution & hot meal services
July 7, 2025
Santa Cruz, CA — Grey Bears, a leading nonprofit serving Santa Cruz County seniors through healthy food distribution and vibrant community programs, is pleased to announce its partnership with the Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust as a new receiving member of their Community Seafood Program. This collaboration will bring sustainably caught, high-quality seafood to support Grey Bears' onsite food distribution and hot meal offerings, bringing fresh, local fish to thousands of seniors’ tables across the county.
Since its launch in November 2020, the Monterey Bay Community Seafood Program has purchased nearly 27,000 pounds of local, sustainably-harvested seafood and has donated over 71,200 seafood meals in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties. "This is a win-win program, whereby local suppliers are paid a fair price for their catch, supporting the seafood economy, and we are actively providing nutritious seafood protein to the most vulnerable in our communities", says Melissa Mahoney, executive director of MBFT. With Grey Bears joining the ranks as Community Seafood Program Partner, local fish will support thousands of seniors who participate in Grey Bears’ Healthy Food Program.
From its mid-county campus, Grey Bears prepares over 63,000 meals annually to seniors in the Santa Cruz community. Its meal service and on-site food distribution programs are powered through their grocery rescue programs, which last year diverted 1.9 million pounds of food from the landfill to seniors’ plates and pantries.
With both organizations centered on local solutions to sustainable food systems, this partnership brings food to senior community members at an especially critical time. Seniors can be especially vulnerable to food insecurity, due to health challenges, fixed incomes, and transportation barriers. With Santa Cruz as home to the fastest-growing senior population in the state of California, local solutions are needed now more than ever.
"Through this partnership, we are able to bring a truly sustainable solution to those who need it most,” Jennifer Merchant, Grey Bears Executive Director, said. “Sustainability is a central focus of our core values, so partnering with MBFT to get locally-caught, protein-rich healthy fish to seniors helps us achieve two of our key goals in a way that benefits so many. We are extremely grateful to connect the local commercial fisherman with local seniors and others facing food insecurity.”
About the Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust (MBFT):
The Monterey Bay Fisheries Trust (MBFT) is a nonprofit working to ensure that Monterey Bay’s coastal communities benefit from active, working waterfronts and local, sustainable seafood for generations to come. To learn more about MBFT, visit https://montereybayfisheriestrust.org/.
About Grey Bears:
Local, vital and multifaceted, Grey Bears promotes good nutrition, activity and social connection as the perfect recipe for healthy aging. Since 1973 the Healthy Food program has delivered 110 million pounds of food to Santa Cruz County seniors, veterans, families and farmworkers. We promote activity, seniors learning and volunteering to keep our community engaged and connected. Learn more at www.greybears.org.