Business

<< Previous   of   Next >> Associated Press  (click to enlarge) Will Allen, founder and chief executive officer of Milwaukee-based Growing Power, walks through one of the organization's greenhouses. His business sells cheaper fruits and vegetables and he said he's seen business rise 25 percent over the last six months.   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Mike Benbow, Business Editor benbow@heraldnet.com   Published: Saturday, December 13, 2008 Big business teams up with food banks By Carrie Antlfinger Associated Press Vermont's only food bank is buying a farm. In California, commercial fishing boats donated 260 pounds of rockfish this month. And in Tennessee, groceries that are fine to eat but deemed unmarketable by retailers are being collected and prepared for those in need. As traditional sources of donations dry up and demand rises amid a worsening recession, food banks and their volunteers are finding creative ways to make the best of a growing challenge -- while the hungry try to make less food go farther. And businesses are helping. "(Hunger) has been a persistent problem but it's radically gotten worse in the last year since the economy has tanked," said Ross Fraser, a spokesman for Feeding America, formerly Second Harvest. The number of people going to Feeding America's food banks nationwide increased 18 percent between 1997 and 2005 to more than 25 million. A more recent figure was not available. Some corporations have recently come forward to help, including grocers and food manufacturers, whose assistance these days comes in the form of money and transportation services. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. last month said it will donate more meat and dairy products, plus $2.5 million, while Kraft Foods Inc. will fund a $4.5 million mobile pantry program. To address rising demand, food banks and other nonprofits are trying to build new alliances with farmers, fishermen and schools (think canned-food drives), while also working to maintain relationships with their traditional base of support. "The need is great and I think we are looking to the future," said Judy Stermer, spokeswoman for the Vermont Foodbank, which plans to close on the purchase of a 20-acre farm by May. It also recently bought a company that salvages farm crop surplus to help address a 25 percent surge in demand. The hungry are also adopting resourceful strategies, such as embracing urban gardening and substituting cheaper foods -- and it is no longer as common for people to wait in long lines at food banks in order to put food on the table. For example, demand has increased 25 percent over the last half a year to 180 bags a week at Farm-to-City Market Basket Program, which delivers bags of up to 25 pounds of fruit and vegetables to neighborhoods in Chicago and across Wisconsin. The bags cost $16 but are worth $25. The majority who buy the baskets are middle- and low-income, said Will Allen, a former NBA player who runs the nonprofit Growing Power, which sponsors the food delivery program and promotes urban gardening. "A lot of people are just too proud to go to a food bank, or food pantry or soup kitchen," Allen said. After learning about the troubles food banks were having, a group of fishermen in Southern California donated boats, bait and deck hands for a deep-sea fishing excursion whose purpose was to supply FOOD Share in Ventura County, Calif. The first expedition was Dec. 8 near the Channel Islands, but more are expected. "The true challenge will be to keep these types of activities going after the holidays -- when people are not as apt to think about the hungry," said Ann Sobel, special projects consultant at FOOD Share. READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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