As hunger grows, so does job of emergency providers

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- It doesn't take a detective to figure this one out. When the economy tanks and jobs go with it, more people are going to have problems putting food on the table.

On Monday, the US Department of Agriculture released new data suggested one in seven American families isn't getting enough to eat. That's 14.6 percent of all U-S households.

Rob Zeaske isn't surprised.

"We're hearing an increase of 40 percent in the number of people coming to those agencies (food shelves and soup kitchens)," shared Zeaske, the executive director of Second Harvest Heartland, the largest emergency food provider in the midwest. "Perhaps most heartbreaking are the people who were formerly donors who are now coming as clients of those foodshelves, so there's been a dramatic turnaround in need."

With a month and a half left in 2009, Second Harvest  Heartland is on pace to distribute a record 50 million pounds of food to emergency food shelves and soup kitchens, up from 41 million in 2008.  Last month alone, they moved 5 million pounds. Zeaske credits corporate partners for helping Second Harvest meet the increased need.

"We've been doing more and more with our partners like General Mills, Super Value, Walmart, Target, they have been over and over rising to the challenge to get more food into our shop," he explained, "as well as financial donations to continue to move the food without interruption to all of the agencies we serve."  

Second Harvest Heartland is also emphasizing efficiency in it's operations, so donations will generate the greatest amount of food possible. Right now, Zeaski estimates that every dollar donated becomes nine dollars worth of food for hungry Minnesotans.

"The operations and supply chain we work, we've got a lot of trucks, a lot of warehouse space, we just re-racked this location, and while that's boring or technical, the implication is we're able to do more with every dollar we get from donors," Zeaske said.

Donors like Vikings wide reciever Bernard Berrian, who for the second year in a row donated enough money to Second Harvest Heartland to buy 500 thanksgiving turkeys for families in need. He's challenging others to donate, to match last years total of $45,000 in donations.

"There's a lot more people going hungry than really needs to," Berrian emphasized.

For more on the Berrian Challenge and the work of Second Harvest Heartland, log on to www.2harvest.org

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