Food Bank to expand cooler and freezer capacity

The Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore will be revealing a Freezer Expansion Project sponsored by The Franklin P. and Arthur W. Perdue Foundation in conjunction with its 100th Anniversary, and the Eastern Shore of Virginia’s Community Foundation.  The expansion is in  partnership with the Perdue Foundation and the Community Foundation , both of which are long standing community partners of the Foodbank.

The next major infrastructure needed to support the Foodbank’s strategic plan was the expansion of the freezer and refrigeration capacity at the Eastern Shore Branch. This investment allowed the Foodbank to safely store and distribute healthy foods, primarily fresh produce and lean protein, to those that need it.

As the Foodbank moves  forward in growing the programs that ensure the health and nutrition of those served, adequate storage capacity and efficient equipment is critical.

The previous chill space was not temperature controlled, therefore causing regular equipment malfunctions and inefficiencies for our day-to-day operations. As our previous freezer did open into a temperature controlled area, the current accommodations can also compromise the safety of the food that is required to remain frozen when it is being loaded and unloaded from the freezer.

The Eastern Shore Branch will be able to accept and distribute an additional 42,000 lbs. of frozen product, specifically protein, to serve the Eastern Shore Community, as well the Foodbank’s headquarters in Norfolk. Additional cooler space will allow the Eastern Shore Branch to accept an additional 92,000 lbs. of fresh produce. Our goal related to produce distribution includes increasing it from 10% of the Foodbank’s overall distribution to 30%, at the Eastern Shore Branch which aligns with fresh produce as a percentage overall distribution in Southeastern VA. The expansion will also extend the life of the fresh produce stored.