Food bank deals with rising costs

VERONA — The cost of providing food to needy families in the Shenandoah Valley and Central Virginia is going up.
Blue Ridge Area Food Bank officials said Friday that its freight budget for the new fiscal year that started this month is increasing 133 percent to $210,000.
The food bank’s fuel budget for its vehicles will increase 47 percent to $85,000.
Food Bank CEO Marty White said food is delivered to the Verona headquarters from as far away as Atlanta and Pennsylvania.
“We’ll be more aggressive in our fundraising. We are redoubling our efforts,” said White. “We are fortunate folks support this organization.”
The food bank is budgeting for more food this fiscal year, and is expanding its backpack program for schools, a program that provides weekly backpacks of food to students in free- and reduced-lunch programs.
The program was offered in Wenonah Elementary School in Waynesboro last school year, and will be expanded to William Perry Elementary starting this fall.
White led Sixth District Democratic Congressional candidate Sam Rasoul on a tour of the food bank warehouse Friday morning.
Rasoul was surprised to learn that about 70 percent of those receiving food from the food bank do not receive government assistance.
“The way to cure hunger is with good quality jobs that provide sustainable income,” he said.
If elected, Rasoul said, he would work to attract what he called green-collar jobs.
“These are jobs that produce wind turbines and solar panels,” he said.
Rasoul said it would be necessary to provide tax incentives to such industries to locate in the Sixth District.
Rasoul said such renewable energy businesses can help the United States reduce its dependence on foreign oil.