Harvesters—The Community Food Network is joining food banks across the nation in calling on everyone to do something to help solve hunger during September. Whether it’s getting your neighbors to donate food for the Our Community CAN food drive or wearing orange on Thursday, September 13, for Hunger Action Day, Harvesters encourages everyone to find a way to help in the fight against hunger.
“The recent Map the Meal Gap 2018 report found that food insecurity exists in every county and congressional district in the nation,” said Harvesters President and CEO Valerie Nicholson-Watson.
“Nearly three million times every year, Harvesters’ network provides food—a meal or a bag of groceries—to someone needing food. During Hunger Action Month, we call on everyone to join Harvesters’ mission and become part of the solution to hunger in our region.”
The study reported 13.9 percent of the population in Harvesters’ 26-county service area of northwest Missouri and northeast Kansas is at risk of hunger, including one in six children. Last year, Harvesters’ network distributed more than 52 million pounds of food, including more than 17 million pounds of fresh produce, to hungry children, families and seniors.
Hunger Action Month activities can be found at https://www.harvesters.org/Hunger-Action-Month In addition, Harvesters has yard signs available for individuals to show their support this month as well as a temporary Facebook frame for the month.
Harvesters is a regional food bank and was Feeding America’s 2011 Food Bank of the Year. Serving a 26-county area of northwestern Missouri and northeastern Kansas, Harvesters provides food and related household products to more than 620 not-for-profit agencies including emergency food pantries, community kitchens, shelters and others. Agencies in Harvesters’ network provide food assistance to as many as 141,500 different people each month. Harvesters, which was founded in 1979, is a certified member of Feeding America, a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks, serving all 50 states. For more information, visit www.harvesters.org.
