FOOD BANK OF EL DORADO COUNTY

In 1999, a grass roots organization called the El Dorado Food Coalition was working to provide food assistance in El Dorado County. Although this group worked hard, they struggled with infrastructure, cold storage, trucks, and dry storage - all the stuff it takes to service a rural county like El Dorado. As the need for assistance grew, the Coalition’s goal quickly became establishing a full service food bank (El Dorado County was one of the few counties in the state of California without one). With the help of a few key organizations and the assistance of the community, the Food Bank of El Dorado County was established in August of 2000.

Starting off small, Food Bank supporters put their noses to the grindstone. From such humble beginnings, their work resulted in the Food Bank becoming the largest collaborative charity in El Dorado County. Currently the Food Bank provides food assistance to communities throughout El Dorado County with multiple programs. One of our largest programs is The Food Bank of El Dorado County’s Emergency Food Assistance Network that consists of multiple agencies creating a safety net for El Dorado County’s at-risk populations experiencing food insecurity. We also have programs for children, Veterans, seniors and many others that need assistance.

In an average year, this collaborative partnership solicits, procures, warehouses, and distributes over $3 million in emergency food assistance to communities throughout El Dorado County.