Northwest Harvest is a non-profit organization supporting food banks in Washington state. Northwest Harvest distributes food to a network of more than 370 food banks, meal programs, and high-need schools throughout Washington State.
In 1967 a group of Seattle community leaders formed The Ecumenical Metropolitan Ministry (EMM), an interfaith organization committed to identifying and addressing the primary problems of the poor and disadvantaged.[1] Shortly after the formation of The EMM, Boeing's workforce dwindled from more than 100,000 employees to 32,500.[2] By June 1971, unemployment in the Seattle area spiked from 2.9% to 13.1%.
Realizing that hunger was one of the most significant problems facing Seattle and beyond, The Ministry partnered with two other organizations to organize a food bank system, originally known as Neighbors in Need. In October 1970, they opened 34 food banks, originally conceived as "a short-term immediate response to the immediate crisis".
Even as the Seattle area recovered from its employment crisis, widespread need for food assistance remained. By early 1972, the network found itself serving 70,000 people per month. The Reagan administration's 1982 cuts to federal food stamp programs exacerbated this need, and led to further expansion of the food bank system.
In 1980, Northwest Harvest distributed just over 1 million pounds of food. By 2013 the amount of food distributed by Northwest Harvest increased to 32 million pounds.
Source of Foodedit
All of the food and operating funds received by Northwest Harvest comes from individuals, businesses, foundations, and other organizations.[3] Approximately 25% of the food distributed by Northwest Harvest is purchased staples, such as rice, beans, pasta, canned fruit and vegetables, and protein. The other 75% comes from in-kind donations, mostly from businesses and institutions. The food received from food drives "provides… variety… [and] helps break the monotony of the staple food items".[4]
Distributionedit
Northwest Harvest operates their own distribution centers in Auburn, Spokane, and Yakima. These warehouses allow Northwest Harvest to handle large quantities of food, including perishable items such as fruits, vegetables, and meat.[4] They also partner with distributors in Grays Harbor, Lewis County, Wahkiakum County, and the Emergency Food Network of Tacoma. These organizations often support one another with staff and transportation services to maximize their efficiency.[5]
Cherry Street Food Bankedit
Northwest Harvest's Cherry Street Food Bank in the First Hill Neighborhood of Seattle is one of the busiest in Washington, providing nearly 1.5 million meals annually.[6]
^ ab"How do we distribute food throughout Washington?", Northwest Harvest News, Summer 2007; pages unnumbered.
^"Networks of Partnership", Northwest Harvest News, Summer 2007; pages unnumbered.
^. Archived from the original on 2014-10-10. Retrieved 2015-02-03.
February 16, 2024
northwest, harvest, profit, organization, supporting, food, banks, washington, state, distributes, food, network, more, than, food, banks, meal, programs, high, need, schools, throughout, washington, state, formation1967, 1967, typenon, profitheadquartersseatt. Northwest Harvest is a non profit organization supporting food banks in Washington state Northwest Harvest distributes food to a network of more than 370 food banks meal programs and high need schools throughout Washington State Northwest HarvestFormation1967 1967 TypeNon profitHeadquartersSeattle WashingtonRegion servedWashington StateWebsitehttp www northwestharvest org Contents 1 History 2 Source of Food 3 Distribution 4 Cherry Street Food Bank 5 See also 6 ReferencesHistory editIn 1967 a group of Seattle community leaders formed The Ecumenical Metropolitan Ministry EMM an interfaith organization committed to identifying and addressing the primary problems of the poor and disadvantaged 1 Shortly after the formation of The EMM Boeing s workforce dwindled from more than 100 000 employees to 32 500 2 By June 1971 unemployment in the Seattle area spiked from 2 9 to 13 1 Realizing that hunger was one of the most significant problems facing Seattle and beyond The Ministry partnered with two other organizations to organize a food bank system originally known as Neighbors in Need In October 1970 they opened 34 food banks originally conceived as a short term immediate response to the immediate crisis Even as the Seattle area recovered from its employment crisis widespread need for food assistance remained By early 1972 the network found itself serving 70 000 people per month The Reagan administration s 1982 cuts to federal food stamp programs exacerbated this need and led to further expansion of the food bank system In 1980 Northwest Harvest distributed just over 1 million pounds of food By 2013 the amount of food distributed by Northwest Harvest increased to 32 million pounds Source of Food editAll of the food and operating funds received by Northwest Harvest comes from individuals businesses foundations and other organizations 3 Approximately 25 of the food distributed by Northwest Harvest is purchased staples such as rice beans pasta canned fruit and vegetables and protein The other 75 comes from in kind donations mostly from businesses and institutions The food received from food drives provides variety and helps break the monotony of the staple food items 4 Distribution editNorthwest Harvest operates their own distribution centers in Auburn Spokane and Yakima These warehouses allow Northwest Harvest to handle large quantities of food including perishable items such as fruits vegetables and meat 4 They also partner with distributors in Grays Harbor Lewis County Wahkiakum County and the Emergency Food Network of Tacoma These organizations often support one another with staff and transportation services to maximize their efficiency 5 Cherry Street Food Bank editNorthwest Harvest s Cherry Street Food Bank in the First Hill Neighborhood of Seattle is one of the busiest in Washington providing nearly 1 5 million meals annually 6 See also edit nbsp Food portalList of food banksReferences edit History of Northwest Harvest Lights Out Seattle Serving Washington a b How do we distribute food throughout Washington Northwest Harvest News Summer 2007 pages unnumbered Networks of Partnership Northwest Harvest News Summer 2007 pages unnumbered Cherry Street Food Bank Archived from the original on 2014 10 10 Retrieved 2015 02 03 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Northwest Harvest amp oldid 1189281018, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
