
MADAWASKA, Maine — Beginning in March, meals provided by the Aroostook Agency on Aging to communities from Fort Kent to Madawaska will no longer be prepared locally, a change the group says will help to serve an additional 20,000 meals annually.
“Throughout Aroostook, we have a waitlist of just over 250 people waiting for Meals on Wheels,” said Kathryn Harnish, director of strategic communications for the Aroostook Agency on Aging. “So by making this change, we are able to lower our costs so significantly that we can serve that many additional meals.”
The Arooostook Agency on Aging helps older residents receive a myriad of services, including nutrition offerings like the Meals on Wheels and community dining programs.
And while the preparation will change, local meal programs will otherwise continue normally.
The agency will distribute meals prepared by Birch Stream Farms, a food manufacturing and packaging company based in Bangor.
Madawaska is among the last major Aroostook communities to switch to meals provided via Birch Stream Farms.
Birch Stream Farms will also provide the meals offered at congregate dining services. Harnish said meals at the Madawaska Senior Center kitchen will still be offered at the same times, but they will no longer be made locally.
“They prepare the meals in advance, and they’re flash frozen,’ she said. “It’s a fast freezing process that preserves the integrity of the meal.”
Once delivered, they will be prepared, plated and served at the senior center at the same time as before.
“Substantively, people will not see a difference in the meal that they receive,” she said.
This change is being made to address rising food and labor costs at a time when nutritional needs in Aroostook County are also continuing to grow, Harnish said.
She said the funding for the agency’s programs in Maine is not keeping up with the demand.
“Nutrition is probably the most significantly impacted,” she said. “It’s getting harder and harder to meet the growing needs of people here in the County.”
The agency also posted about the change via its Facebook page last week, and encouraged anyone with additional questions or feedback to reach out by email at info@aroostookaging.org.
Correction: This story has been amended to correct the Agency on Aging’s nutrition offerings.