Critical need for canned goods at Harvest Hope Food Bank

Harvest Hope Food Bank is in critical need of canned food donations or financial donations which can be used to buy canned goods.  Denise Holland, CEO of Harvest Hope Food Bank said there is a critical need for shelf-stable foods such as meats, fruits, and vegetables.

“Each month we serve nearly one million meals in the Upstate area,” said Holland. “While we’ve been blessed with people and businesses giving us fresh produce during the summer, our pantry has become almost bare of canned goods. Now that people are back from summer vacations and getting kids back to school, we need their help to aid families and children in need in the 20 counties we serve throughoutSouth Carolina.”

According to Holland, Harvest Hope has the opportunity to purchase much needed canned foods at a special rate. She said, “A tractor trailer load of canned goods costs $21,000. Each can cost 58 cents.”

Currently, Harvest Hope is seeking monetary contributions or locally-sponsored food drives to replenish their canned goods. Following is a breakdown of what a specific donation can provide:

Monetary contribution

• $17 feeds a family for one week.
• $30 feeds a child for one month.
• $50 provides 250 meals to those in need.
• $100 provides 500 lbs. of food.

Donations can be made online at https://donate.harvesthope.org or mailed to Harvest Hope Food Bank, 2818 White Horse Road, Greenville, SC 29611.

Food drive

Neighborhoods, schools, churches, businesses or organizations can also help by hosting a food drive. There are two ways to host a Harvest Hope food drive:

• Hold a physical food drive during a specific time period. Contact Katie Denton at 803-254-4432, ext. 3100 or email [email protected] to organize a food drive.
• Hold a Virtual Food Drive, a new and easy way to get food to Harvest Hope Food Bank without the hassle of cans. Individuals, businesses or organizations can email a virtual food drive link to their friends or post a virtual food drive link on their Facebook page and Twitter. Visit http://www.harvesthope.org/virtual-food-drives to learn more about Harvest Hope’s Virtual Food Drives.

Harvest Hope maintains a low overhead and low administrative costs to ensure that 98¢ out of every dollar donated goes toward their mission to provide food to those in need. Equally, every dollar turns into five pounds of food.

About Harvest Hope

Harvest Hope Food Bank serves 20 counties across South Carolina with a mission of providing hunger relief with dignity, compassion and education to people in need.  Harvest Hope is a non-profit organization with food banks in Columbia, Florence and Greenville, SC.  For more information please visit www.harvesthope.org.