Boston Area Gleaners Inc

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
300434755
IRS 990 coverage
2015–2024
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-EZ 2014, Form 990-N 2012
Location
Acton, MA, USA
Phone
7818943212
Rating
89
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Food Programs

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$8,581,755
Expenses
$8,536,454
Assets
$6,668,554
Liabilities
$239,821

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

13 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • MARK JOHNSON (PRESIDENT)
  • JOAN BLAUSTEIN (VICE PRESIDENT)
  • USHA THAKRAR (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • USHA THAKRAR (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $104,391 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Boston area gleaners is committed to increasing access to fresh fruits and vegetables across our communities while supporting our region's farms and reducing systemic food waste.

What it reported doing in 2024

Harvested/gleaned 1,861,677 pounds of produce left in the fields by local area farmers; grew and harvested 337,337 pounds of vegetables on stonefield farm; packed and distributed all produce and transported it in our fleet of 23 refrigerated trucks to our array of partners: food banks, food pantries, meal programs and shelters who make it available to families and individuals. Through the food hub we also help local farmers find markets for their produce with businesses, schools, and nonprofit organizations and provide subsidized pick up and delivery services that maximize participation.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 64% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 40% for direct work, and 60% for grants.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 88
  • Transparency & Controls: 90
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 43
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 91.3%; rating input score 91
  • Program expense ratio: 89.3%; rating input score 89
  • Fundraising efficiency: $39.4 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 94.1%; rating input score 94; 23rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 99.2%; rating input score 99; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 0.5%; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.78; rating input score 29; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.04; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 1.2%; rating input score 79; 79th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 26.4% per year; rating input score 100; 90th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 24.8% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 28.7% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 91.3% of revenue deployed · 89.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 12 of 12 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $7.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $104K · 13 people listed
  • Consistency: 33 of 34 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 7 filed schedules · includes major donors and grants
  • Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 59 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 52 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 36/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 29/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.