Volunteers load fresh vegetables from the Midwest Food Bank in Peachtree City for distribution to charities across the South. Photo by Jack Bernard.
Jack Bernard
“The cycle of food insecurity shouldn’t end at the food bank. It should help people become self-sufficient and thrive in life. When we’re successful, people no longer have to worry about where their next meal is coming from or how they’re going to feed their kids the next day.” — Pat Burke, COO and Executive Director, Midwest Food Bank.
The front pages of many American newspapers are filled with depressing stories about politics and problems. We don’t hear much about organizations fighting for justice, like the Midwest Food Bank (MFB), a charity that has had its Georgia warehouse here in Peachtree City since 2011.
Founded in 2003, MFB’s faith-based mission is to alleviate “hunger and malnutrition locally and around the world,” and it also provides disaster relief during emergency situations.
And their efforts to tackle this enormous problem have been astonishingly successful: In 2023 alone, MFB distributed $482 million worth of food internationally to 2,400 nonprofit organizations. Last year alone, MFB’s efforts helped feed 1.3 million people in need.
As a member of the Rotary Club of Peachtree City, I volunteered at the Midwest Food Bank’s local distribution facility, which hosted 4,366 volunteers in 2023 alone. I had heard a little about the facility before I began volunteering, but I had no idea how valuable the MFB is to our community and the world.
I was also really amazed by the number of people of all ages, abilities, races and ethnicities who gave so generously of their time to help those less fortunate, and I felt like people here in Fayette County needed to know more about this.
The nonprofit was originally founded in the Midwest but now has 10 locations across the country (covering 23 states) and two overseas in Kenya and Haiti.
The Peachtree City effort provides free food to more than 230 nonprofit organizations across the South, who then distribute it free of charge to those in need.
In 2023, Midwest Food Bank Georgia distributed more than $30 million in free food to its nonprofit partners, which consist of food pantries, soup kitchens, child feeding programs, homeless shelters and more.
We may not realize how difficult it is for many families to get nutrition in affluent communities like Peachtree City. Approximately 13% of all households in the United States face food insecurity. At the same time, it’s estimated that 30%-40% of the food supply is wasted.
The Midwest Food Bank knows that America isn’t a food insecurity problem, it’s a food distribution problem. MFB is able to rescue food that would otherwise be thrown away and get it into the hands of people in need in our community.
MFB has successfully partnered with numerous producers to obtain food that would have otherwise been thrown away for various reasons, such as expired expiration dates. MFB’s food donors include well-known companies such as PepsiCo/Quaker, Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s, Delta, Tyson, Panera, Costco, Bob Evans, Del Monte, and Nestle.
I’m not a fortune teller, but I can read your mind as you read this column. You’re asking, “How can I help?” There are three ways to do this:
• You can volunteer your time. We need people to help sort, pack and distribute food.
• Organizations can co-sponsor MFB events such as the Fore Our Community golf tournament, Miles for Midwest 5K, Harvest of Blessings charity dinner and the MFB pickleball tournament.
• You can donate directly: Every dollar you donate will turn into $30 worth of food for people in need.
For more information, call 770-486-1103, visit the website at midwestfoodbank.org or email mfbgeorgia@midwestfoodbank.org.
