Second Harvest North Florida Volume 10 • Issue 2 • April 2010 www.WeNourishHope.org
Happenings
a newsletter for member agencies
Government program helps farmers, ensures fair distribution of free food to agencies to feed those in need Each year about one-third of the food that Second Harvest North Florida distributes is The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) products that come through the State Department of Agriculture. The program was started in the 1980s with the infamous “government cheese” programs and has grown and matured through the years to become a key part of the food assistance that is available for those living in need. The role of the program is two-fold: to provide nutritional food for households in need and to support domestic agriculture by purchasing from American producers and stabilizing market prices.
Second Harvest Hours of Operation Mon.-Thurs.............7:15 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Fridays............................7:15 a.m.-noon (effective June 12, 2009)
Helpful Resource:
Second Harvest distributes a variety of products to its agencies through The Emergency Food Assistance Program.
Each year, Congress allocates a portion of the Federal Farm Bill dollars to TEFAP, which is then distributed to the states. The Florida Department of Agriculture uses that money to purchase commonly needed food items and to help specific local producers, which is why Second Harvest North Florida sometimes receives a large volume of milk or blueberries; those specific food industries were receiving government support. Government-purchased items are distributed free throughout the state based on strict guidelines. Each county in Second Harvest’s 18-county service area receives a specific state-mandated percentage of these items based on poverty and unemployment statistics. For example, Duval County receives 41.25 percent of the USDA resources received by Second Harvest, Baker County receives 1.29 percent and Alachua County gets 18.89 percent. There is no control over what items come in to Second Harvest through this program, but because the Florida Department of Agriculture sets the county percentages, every agency will receive its fair percentage of product.
Please note that each agency must take its complete allocation of products. If you are a USDA agency and find yourself with an abundance of a specific item and are unsure about how to best utilize it, please contact Second Harvest for recipe ideas for some of the less familiar items (dried cherries, blueberries, walnuts, etc.). Second Harvest is grateful for the additional support that the TEFAP program provides and remains committed to continually looking for new sources of food, forging new partnerships and improving the variety, quality and availability of products for our member agencies. In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculture policy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability. To file a complaint of discrimination, write to: USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
SNAP Outreach: In the Jacksonville area, only 72 percent of those individuals who are eligible receive SNAP benefits (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – formerly known as food stamps). By using any Internet ready computer, Florida residents can learn if they are eligible and can apply for SNAP benefits to improve their diets and stretch their dollars. Please visit www.myflorida.com/accessflorida. If you are interested in learning how you can help Jacksonville residents sign up for food stamps, please call Sandy Beaumont, ACCESS Community Partner Liaison, at 904.723.5338.
Stamp Out Hunger: On May 8, the National Association of Letter Carriers Food Drive will take place. Last year, 325,000 pounds of food were collected in what is Second Harvest North Florida’s biggest food drive of the year. This year we are hoping to collect 425,000 pounds! In the week leading up to the event, the letter carriers will deliver special postage-paid Publix grocery bags to every home in Florida, along with a reminder to fill that bag with shelf-stable food and leave it outside their home on Saturday, May 8. Please encourage your staff, your volunteers, your congregations and partners to participate; this is a great way to help fight hunger by donating food to help those who need it most. Since the letter carriers pick up the food at each family’s mailbox, it is the easiest food drive of the year in which to participate!
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Non-Profit Org U.S. Postage PAID Jacksonville, FL Permit No. 1610
Second Harvest North Florida 1502 Jessie Street Jacksonville, FL 32206 www.WeNourishHope.org
Gathering resources. Sharing food. Serving people in need. WeNourishHope.org
The mission of Second Harvest North Florida is to distribute food and grocery products to hungry people and to educate the public about the causes and possible solutions to problems of domestic hunger.
CONTACT US
1502 Jessie Street Jacksonville, FL 32206 Main: 904.353.3663 (FOOD)
Member Agency Information: Jim Chynoweth Director of Agencies & Distribution 904.353.3663, fax 904.358.4281 jimc@WeNourishHope.org
Volunteer Information: Leah Bezares, Office Manager 904.353.3663 lbezares@WeNourishHope.org
From Second Harvest Executive Director Thomas Mantz: I just returned from the Feeding America Annual Summit in Austin, Texas. Feeding America is the over-arching organization that brings all food banks across the United States together. Collectively, we distributed more than 2.8 billion pounds of food to those in need. That number takes your breath away, but it represents just two to three percent of the need in our country. It is inconceivable that we live in a time and place where 300 billion pounds of food are needed to ensure that no one goes hungry in our country.
To Make Financial Donations:
Most alarmingly, increasing numbers of children are living in poverty. By 2011, an estimated 25 percent, or one out of every four children, will be living in poverty – stunning, overwhelming and heart-wrenching statistics.
uTo learn more, see http:// www.WeNourishHope.org/ how-to-help.
Those of us gathered in Texas recommitted ourselves to not only answer the call to provide more emergency food, but also to end the problem. This is a matter that can be resolved. No one need go to bed hungry tonight, or any other night, particularly our children.
Karen Rieley, VP for Advancement 904.730.8281 krieley@WeNourishHope.org
Food banks are partnering with more and more manufacturers and retailers. We are talking with farmers about fresh food and seeking relationships with other social service agencies that can create efficiencies and new methods of food delivery. Our goal is to find every bit of food available to help hungry people – from farm to fork. Second Harvest North Florida can provide six meals for every dollar donated. In other words, we can create one meal for less than 17 cents. We are rightfully proud of this efficiency, and we work hard to put as much of every donation on people’s plates. We in the Feeding America network have accepted the challenge to not rest until all men, women and children in our country are free from concern about how they will find food for themselves and their families. Food insecurity and malnutrition are devastating to quality of life and health; however, they respond really well to treatment. As the saying goes, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away!”
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