Great Plains Food Bank Working With USDA To Use Farm Overstock To Help Families In Need

The food bank is making daily stops in areas like Minot, Dickenson and Bismarck.

MOORHEAD, Minn. — At the Probstfield Center For Education In Moorhead hundreds of boxes are being loaded up into cars.

The Great Plains Food Bank is teaming up with the U.S Agriculture Department’s Family Food Box Program.

The program partners with local farmers to buy their overstock produce not sold because of COVID-19 and then package and redistribute it.

“Like everyone this pandemic hits us all hard including those suffering from food insecurities it really hit home, we saw an immediate increase in demand,” Communications Manager For Great Plains Food Bank Jared Slide said.

The group of volunteers are hoping to push around 1,400 boxes with any leftovers going to other food banks.

The goal is hand out over one million pounds of produce throughout the region.

“It takes a village to be able to pull this off. We really appreciate the work of volunteers to come on down and provide a service to help a lot of people out in a difficult time,” Slide said.

The food bank is making daily stops in areas like Minot, Dickenson and Bismarck.

Slinde says the work goes beyond COVID-19 as these volunteers will be provided essential services year round for those who need it.

“So the food bank has been around since 1983 and I can speak on behalf of all of those involved. We don’t have any intentions of going anywhere anytime soon,” Slide said.