|
|
FAQs
Q. What does Northwest Harvest do? Don’t you just run a food bank in Seattle?
A. We do operate the Cherry Street Food Bank at the home of our Seattle offices, but our main responsibility is as a food distribution network for all of Washington. Our 300 partner food banks and meal programs are independently-run and community-based. We use our contacts, buying power and 40 years experience with issues of hunger to provide more food and better nutritional variety to partner programs, allowing them to focus more of their limited resources toward serving clients.
Q. What do you mean by partner programs?
A. Independent hunger programs in 36 of 39 Washington counties partner with us to receive food. They serve as our distribution arm to every corner of the state. All programs must operate with the same core values: treating clients with dignity, requiring minimal information, and serving all who seek food.
Q. Who uses a food bank?
A. People often imagine food banks and meal programs serving only the chronic homeless. In fact, our clients are everyone-- the working poor, families or individuals suffering immediate crises such as a layoff, medical emergency, domestic violence or displacement after forced evacuation. These same situations can force clients into homelessness, but when the only financial sacrifice a family can make amounts to a choice between the most basic of necessities, we can provide one of them-- food. We do know that throughout our hunger response network, nearly 40 percent of those we serve are babies and children, and nearly 18 percent are senior citizens.
Q. What is food insecurity?
A. Households are determined to be food insecure when they run out of food and do not have the resources to purchase more; or they have to reduce the quality of food that they are able to purchase; or feeding children unbalanced diets or skipping meals so that their children can eat.
Q. How do people get food from you? What paperwork do they need to bring to the food bank?
A. Clients need only come into one of our 300 partner programs. We require no proof of income, address or identity. If someone comes to us for assistance, that is proof enough or need.
Q. How do you know that people aren’t taking advantage of the system?
A. It is hard to imagine that people will stand in line in the rain and the cold for food they don’t need. We know that the overwhelming percentages of people coming to food banks need that food. We prefer to err on the side of providing food to all, instead of turning someone away who is in genuine need.
Q. Where does your funding come from?
A. The majority comes from individuals. The remainder comes from corporations, foundations, churches, and community groups.
Q. Where does my donation go?
A. Nearly 93% of your donation will go towards food purchase and distribution. Other expenses include: salary for staff that pick up and unload food, staff who load food on trucks going to our member programs, Cherry Street Food Bank staff; trucking costs; storage costs; packaging.
Q. What are your administrative costs?
A. Over the last thirty years, our administrative and fundraising costs together have never exceeded 8%. Currently they are at just over 7%.
Q. Have you ever turned anyone away due to lack of food?
A. No. With continued support from the community, no one will leave here without food.
Q. How are you different from other hunger organizations?
A. We are locally grown and locally operated, statewide, not a United Way agency, provide food to our partner programs absolutely free of charge, and do not have any requirements or restrictions on the people we serve. We emphasize responsiveness to client concerns and we can recognize and respond to special food needs whether cultural, medical, age-related or otherwise. We purchase more food, proportionally, than any other food distributor. We raise funds specifically to purchase food so that we have more control over what we provide to partner agencies and a greater ability to respond to client needs.
Q. Why aren’t you a United Way member agency?
A. By operating as an independent agency, we can adhere to our mission of not requiring identification or proof of need. Though Northwest Harvest is not a member agency, we do receive funds from donors who designate Northwest Harvest in their United Way contributions.
Q. Is the need growing?
A. The need for nutritious food is definitely increasing. Overwhelming evidence links poverty and malnutrition with obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Northwest Harvest is responding to that need in the following ways:
- Over 50% of food we distribute is fruits and vegetables.
- We’ve moved to a modern warehouse in Kent. This facility allows us to accept and store greater quantities of frozen and bulk food, and offers much-needed repacking services for both
Q. Why did you move to a new warehouse?
A. First and foremost, we lost the donated space from which we’d been operating for more than 20 years. It was a blessing in disguise, as we had outgrown the space long ago. Locating and retrofitting a modern warehouse also fit with our long term goal of building our capacity for increasing the nutritional value of food bank offerings statewide. Overwhelming evidence links poverty and malnutrition with obesity, diabetes and heart disease. We believe our focus on improving food bank nutrition is crucial given that we are the only statewide food distributor.
Q. Won’t your operating expenses increase with the new warehouse?
A. The new and much larger warehouse will entail higher operating costs. However, it will also increase our efficiency and reduce costs in multiple ways, such as by eliminating the need for leased storage and off-site refrigeration facilities and by reducing the number of times food is handled between initial receipt and final distribution. Financial analysis indicates that we should expect our operating budget to increase to less than 1% of budget, or in the range of $202,000-277,000 per year. We are growing our major giving program to help cover these costs.
Q. Is there a partner program in my area?
A. Please see our list of partner programs.
Q. Where can I donate food?
A. Please see our list of public drop sites.
Q. Do you glean fruit for the food banks?
A. We don’t have the resources to glean, but other nonprofit organizations coordinate gleaning projects like the Community Fruit Tree Harvest to benefit food programs. Visit www.solid-ground.org for more information.
Updated June 2008
|
|
|
