To download a PDF of the Food Bank's 2013 Facts & Figures, click here.
To download a PDF of the Food Bank's Annual Report for fiscal year 2012 (7/1/11 - 6/30/12), click here.
Nearly one in three persons served by the Food Bank's network of agencies is a child under the age of 18. Six percent are seniors over the age of 65.
Seventy-six percent of those served by our member agencies have income at or below the federal poverty level.
Additionally, many recipients of food assistance suffer from economic hardships. Of our client households:
- 41% report that they have such limited income that they must choose between paying for food and paying their rent
- 20% report that an adult in the household has been laid off in the past year and remains unemployed.
- 43% report that they have had to choose between paying for heat or utilities and paying for food.
The Food Bank's statewide network of member agencies serves more than 66,000 Rhode Islanders each month. One in three served is a child under the age of 18.
The Food Bank provides food to 178 member agencies at 238 sites across the state. Individuals needing food assistance visit meal sites, food pantries and shelters. To find the nearest member agency of the Food Bank, click
here. For information on food assistance and a variety of other services available to Rhode Islanders in need, call the United Way Hotline at 2-1-1.
During the Food Bank’s last fiscal year (July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012), the Food Bank distributed a total of 9.75 million pounds of food.
The Food Bank occupies a 75,000 square foot facility. Its warehouse is just over 35,000 square feet and can hold two million pounds of food at one time.
The Rhode Island Community Food Bank distributes quality, nutritious foods to individuals facing hunger. Some of the Food Bank’s regular items include canned vegetables, protein, canned fruit, grains, beverages and cereal.
The Food Bank also distributes fresh produce, bread and dairy products.
Of the 9.75 million pounds of food distributed last year, nearly 2 million pounds was fresh produce.
The Rhode Island Community Food Bank receives food from a variety of different sources in a number of ways. Increasingly, charitable contributions are important because the amount of food the Food Bank must purchase at wholesale has increased.
Here are the Food Bank's food sources:
- Food purchased by Food Bank at wholesale: 39%
- Food donated by local food companies, supermarkets and farms: 26%
- Feeding America, the national network of food banks (food donated by national manufacturers and growers): 20%
- Food drives: 9%
- USDA donations: 5%
- Other food banks: 1%
The Food Bank utilizes 88 cents of every dollar donated to distribute food and operate other hunger-alleviating programs. Only 12 cents of each donated dollar is designated for administrative and fundraising expenses.
The Food Bank is funded primarily by gifts from individuals, corporate donations and foundation grants. Government funding accounts for just 6% of the operating budget.
The Rhode Island Community Food Bank is a privately funded, non-profit charitable organization that relies upon public support and donations to operate and fulfill its mission of providing quality food to people facing hunger.
The Food Bank is staffed with approximately 48 full- and/or part-time employees who are supported by hundreds of volunteers each year.