KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Second Harvest Food Bank marked 40 years of service with a milestone food distribution number — 24 million pounds of food given away during the fiscal year ending June 2023.
They said as the year progressed, they saw meal distribution numbers exceed those seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. They said they gave away high amounts of food mostly due to inflation as well as the rising price of food and transportation costs. They said they worked with 630 pantries, agency partners and community organizations last year.
Almost 70% of the food given away was considered "green pounds," which is considered to have the highest nutritional value. Second Harvest covers 18 counties and provided 20 million meals — the highest number of meals in the organization's history.
According to a press release, the organization also logged more than 289,000 miles giving out food to neighbors experiencing food insecurity. They said the Food Rescue program also prevented more than 10 million pounds of food from going to waste at grocers and restaurants.
Instead of going to waste, Second Harvest said it was brought to people who need it most. They said the community recorded 29,072 volunteer hours repackaging, sorting and distributing food as well.
Additional statistics about Second Harvest's work throughout the fiscal year is available below.
- 24,581,939 pounds of food distributed
- 20,484,949 meals distributed
- 17,178,813 "green pounds" distributed (including 5.7 million pounds of produce)
- 10,149,061 pounds of food from the Food Rescue program distributed
- 289,854 miles driven by the Second Harvest fleet
- 29,072 volunteer hours logged
- 182,141 people served each month on average
Anyone who needs help due to food insecurity can find help through the Second Harvest website.