DALLAS, Sept. 14, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The North Texas Food Bank announced a bold ten-year plan to provide access to 92 million nutritious meals per year by 2025 at a ceremony this morning in The Shed at the Dallas Farmer Market. The goal reflects the current need for food assistance in NTFB's 13-county service area and represents a nearly 50 percent increase over the most recent fiscal year mark of 62 million nutritious meals provided.
"No one in North Texas should have to worry about hunger, but despite our booming economy and population growth, that is our reality with one of four children in our region food insecure," said North Texas Food Bank President and CEO, Jan Pruitt. "One in six of our general population – children, working parents and seniors – are food insecure and unsure about their next meal."
"With our ten-year plan, we will put a major stake in the ground to ensure nutritious meals are on the table based on the need today. This plan will get the right food to the right people at the right time, but we cannot do it alone. We'll need support from advocates, faith communities and donors to make this vision a reality -- and we are confident they will step up to this challenge."
Joining Pruitt in the announcement and pledging support for the plan were Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins, Plano Mayor Harry LaRosiliere, Parkland Center for Clinical Innovation CEO, Dr. Ruben Amarasingham, and North Texas Food Bank Board Chair, Tom Black.
According to Pruitt, the plan will be achieved through a three-pronged strategy:
| Community engagement – operating in communities near prospective stakeholders: partner agencies, clients, volunteers and donors |
| Network expansion – improving access to nutritious food by improving our partner agencies infrastructure and deploying new programs that bring food assistance to areas where it is needed most. An important aspect of this program will be developing Hub partners to better serve local communities. |
| Client visibility – understanding the impact that the NTFB network is having on clients to ensure stewardship and to promote service integration |
To achieve the ten-year vision, the North Texas Food Bank will embark on a dramatic expansion of its current operation. Among goals to be achieved by 2025:
| Food sourcing – increasing food donated by the public, food industry and grocery retailers to 88 million pounds, an increase of 33 million more pounds than currently sourced |
| Volunteers – increasing volunteers to 65,000 per year, about 30,000 more than the current active volunteer database |
| Operational capacity – adding 40,000 square feet of refrigerated space to ensure storage of more fresh produce and proteins |
Progress against the Plan
Execution against the ten-year plan has begun with two key milestones announced today:
First Hub Named. According to Pruitt, the North Texas Food Bank has identified Sharing Life Community Outreach in Mesquite as its first hub in the refined Hub and Spoke Distribution system. Sharing Life was chosen as the first Hub in the ten-year plan execution because it is a well-run, stable and financially secure organization able to serve smaller nearby pantries in an area of highest need. The Sharing Life Hub will be modeled on the pioneering collaboration of NTFB and Crossroads Community Services.
Parkland Center for Clinical Innovation-NTFB Patient/Pantry Collaboration. Through a new data sharing system, developed in collaboration with the Parkland Center for Clinical Innovation (PCCI), the NTFB's partner agencies and other human service providers will soon be connected to each another and Parkland Hospital through a standardized computer platform. Through the network, partner agencies will have access to relevant health information to help them meet their clients' critical dietary needs and participate in preventive care efforts, such as monitoring blood pressure. The system will facilitate referrals and help NTFB determine how food assistance should be aligned with services that support health and financial stability to measurably change lives.
New Brand Identity Introduced
At the ceremony today, the North Texas Food Bank's new logo and brand identity was officially unveiled on a new 48-foot bobtail food delivery truck. The primary logo is comprised of two parts: the wheat stalk and the wordmark. The wheat stalk, historically identified with NTFB, has been refined to complement the Feeding America logo, and includes an arrow representing upward growth and forward movement for the ten-year plan and beyond. The wordmark uses a new customized font that creates a signature look, while simplifying the logo and increasing legibility. The color palette also was updated to align with the Feeding America brand identity.
"We invite the North Texas community – individuals, families, faith communities, and businesses -- to help us achieve this unprecedented goal of providing access to 92 million nutritious meals annually ten years from now," Pruitt stated. "People who are hungry can't learn, work or participate in life, and we believe it's everyone's responsibility to help our food-insecure neighbors achieve what so many of us take for granted."
ABOUT THE NORTH TEXAS FOOD BANK
The North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) is a top-ranked nonprofit relief organization. Each day, the North Texas Food Bank provides access to 170,000 meals for hungry children, seniors and families through a network of more than 1,000 programs and more than 200 Partner Agencies. In fiscal year 2014, NTFB provided access to some 62 million meals.
NTFB is a member of Feeding America, a national hunger relief organization.
For additional information and to access our digital press kit, visit ntfb.org/92million