Food Banks/Weld Food Bank Q & A

Q: What is a food bank and where does it get its food?

• A food bank’s main function is to collect and distribute food from national donors and local processors, farms, gardens, restaurants, bakeries, supermarkets, and distributors.
• All donated food is collected, safety-sorted, inventoried, and sent out to other agencies that feed the populations at risk for hunger.
• Storage: It is necessary to have a warehouse capable of receiving many tractor-trailer loads of products, plus large industrial-size freezer capacity to store frozen foods, bakery items, and meat and perishables. Cooler space is also necessary for fruits, vegetables, eggs, and other temperature-sensitive items.
• Hundreds if not thousands of volunteers are needed to handle, safety-sort, and inspect the huge volumes of incoming food.

Q: What is unique about Weld Food Bank as a model?

• Weld Food Bank is a private 501(c)(3) registered nonprofit organization, not affiliated with government agencies. It is affiliated with Feeding America, one of the largest hunger-relief organizations in the U.S., with 205 food banks nationwide. Call the Weld Food Bank director Leona Martens at 970-356-2199 or e-mail:  info@weldfoodbank.org for information about the Weld Food Bank program or the location of your nearest food bank.
• The Weld Food Bank mission statement is to lead and engage the community in the fight against hunger in Northern Colorado.
• The food bank, 18 years in operation, owns a 35,000 square-foot warehouse, and is building a large emergency kitchen that can feed 5,000 people in the event of a local weather or other disaster.
• During the past year, the Weld Food Bank distributed 8.1 million pounds of food, of which 6.1 million was from out of state!

Q: Why do people need food assistance?

• Life can be challenging for everyone, especially in economic downturns. Some of the reasons people seek out a food bank are: loss of a job, medical emergencies, homelessness, family crisis, death, or natural disasters. Anyone can be stricken with hunger or homelessness.

Q: What entities or organizations distribute food directly in Northern Colorado?

• There are 115 nonprofit agencies throughout the 4,000-square-mile county that give food to their constituencies. They must have a 501(c)(3) designation and serve an “at-risk” population.
• Examples of such groups would be battered women’s shelters, day care centers, churches, temples, The Salvation Army, Meals on Wheels, Boys and Girls Clubs, food pantries, community centers, senior centers, residential treatment centers, and soup kitchens.

Q: How can people help their food bank?

• Donate food or funds.
• Become an organization partner.
• Be an advocate with the media.
• Become a warehouse volunteer to create emergency boxes and backpacks for recipients.

Q: What are some key American and Weld County hunger statistics (2013)?

• Hunger is on the rise in America and in Weld County, Colorado.
• About 30% of adults in Weld County do not eat for a whole day.
• Over 25% of children go a day without food periodically.
• Half of all people in Weld county must choose between food and rent payments.
• About 42% of county residents must choose between medication and food.
• In the nation, over 40% of homes have at least one unemployed adult. Weld has over 50%.
• When our Sathya Sai Baba Center of Northern Colorado started volunteering in the Weld County warehouse in 2008, one in eleven Americans was on food stamps. Now (in 2013), the figure is one in six and growing! In American schools, more than 60% of all children are on the free breakfast and free lunch programs.