How A Food Bank Works
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| The River Valley Regional Food Bank distributes food to front line agencies and missions who serve people that otherwise are unable to provide adequate food for themselves or their families. The RVRFB has been serving West Central Arkansas for more than 20 years. |
| What does the Food Bank do? |
| The River Valley Regional Food Bank is West Central Arkansas’ primary provider of donated food for agencies that serve the needy. Since its inception, the RVRFB has distributed millions of pounds of food for needy citizens. Last year alone, over 4 million pounds of food was distributed. |
| Where does the food come from? |
| The majority of the food that the Food Bank distributes is provided by the food industry, which donates its surplus products. Local food companies donate to the Food Bank and more than 400 national companies also support our local efforts via the Feeding America national food bank network. The Feeding America distribution system is accessed through the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance, which serves as a buying coalition from the Feeding America system on behalf of all the Arkansas food banks. AHRA also assists in the purchase of food for the grocery co-op programs offered by many of the food banks, including this one. |
| Donations include: surplus supermarket items, fresh produce, production overruns, unsold breads, mislabeled goods–all wholesome and nutritious, but for one reason or another, unmarketable. Much of the food it distributes would have gone to waste; instead, the food bank, reclaims, inspects, repackages or labels these edible, but no longer retail-saleable, goods. The Food Bank also benefits from local food drives and distributes food on behalf of various state and federal feeding programs. |
| The Food Bank also contracts with the State of Arkansas to house and distribute USDA Commodity foods to those agencies that contract to do so. This is some of the most wholesome and nutritious food we receive and it is a great addition to the donated and co-op groceries our agencies provide. |
| Who can receive food bank food? |
| Churches and non-profit organizations that meet the Food Bank’s basic criteria may join the Food Bank. Member agencies include: |
| • Food Outreach Ministries |
| • Emergency Food Pantries |
| • Services to the Homebound |
| • Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Programs |
| • Programs for the Disabled |
| • Job Training and Placement Programs |
| What are the membership criteria? |
| To become a Food Bank member agency, an organization must: |
| • Feed needy people free of charge |
| • Maintain a regular feeding program |
| • Be an incorporated 501(c)(3) nonprofit or a qualified church. |
| How do the member agencies support the Food Bank? |
| A Food Bank is a membership organization whose mission is to serve as a central clearinghouse for the collection of donated food and its distribution to charitable organizations that feed the needy. In order to cover the costs of soliciting, collecting, repacking, and distributing millions of pounds of donated food each year, member agencies provide a shared maintenance fee. This shared maintenance fee is applied to the cost per pound based on usage of food bank services. The shared maintenance fee is not a payment for food. |
| Consequently, at the Food Bank, an agency can secure nutritious food for just a fraction of what it would cost at retail value. For example, a member agency can obtain an entire case of cereal (14 boxes) for less than the cost of a single box of cereal. Agencies operate on donations or allocated funding, and as a result, their clients never have to pay for food. |
| Why is the Food Bank Needed? |
| While all of Arkansas suffers from chronic poverty no matter where you go; there is poverty even within its richest counties. The River Valley of West Central Arkansas is no exception. Sebastian County, for example, has an adult poverty rate of over 17%. In neighboring counties, close to 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 3 children live at or below the federal poverty level. |
| With the rising costs of housing, utilities, fuel and food, residents are forced to choose between paying the rent, transportation and/or medicines and providing food for their family. The Food Bank, through its membership, enables families to do both. |
| Overall, hunger among adults affects 1 out of 6 folks in our area. Twelve percent of the people needing assistance consist of persons aged 60 years and older. Children are the most vulnerable to hunger. Of the emergency food recipients in our area, 30% are children. |
Map the Missing Meal Gap
September is Hunger Action Month
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALu40F-5H_A