Capital Area Food Bank Opens New Facility to Address Growing Need
Capital Area Food Bank Opens New Facility to Address Growing Need
In an effort to address a "growing hunger crisis" in the Washington, D.C., region, the Capital Area Food Bank is opening a new $37 million distribution center, the Washington Post reports.
The new 123,000-square-foot facility will double the foodbank's current storage space and increase its freezer and refrigerator capacity. The facility also will feature commercial and teaching kitchens, classroom space for nutrition education and cooking classes, energy-efficient lighting, low-flow faucets, and solar panels donated by BP. Much of the funding for the facility was provided by the district's Office of Housing and Community Development and a capital campaign led by Washington Post Co. chair Donald E. Graham, hotel executive J.W. Marriott, Jr., and the late Abe Pollin and his wife, Irene. In recognition of a $5 million gift from Carlyle Group founder and managing director William E. Conway, Jr. and his wife, Joanne, through their charitable trust, the new facility will be named the Bedford Falls Foundation Distribution Center.
The Capital Area Food Bank serves as the central supplier for more than 700 food pantries and nonprofits assisting more than 680,000 people in the D.C. area, including 200,000 children. While the organization expects to distribute a record 33 million pounds of food this year, up from 23 million pounds at the beginning of the recession, it is only able to help three-quarters of area residents in need.
"We are still not able to meet the growing demand," CAFB executive director Lynn Brantley told the Post. "The middle class is under stress, and many people who have never needed emergency food services find themselves at food pantries."
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