14 nonprofit organizations recognized for their commitment to local residents

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According to Study, 12.9% of Residents in Eastern IA/Western IL Struggle with Hunger

DAVENPORT, IOWA- River Bend Foodbank announced the release of the annual Map the Meal Gap study, which details the startling rate of food insecurity experienced by community members in their 22-county service area. Map the Meal Gap 2015 results reveal that food insecurity disproportionately affects the most vulnerable populations, including over 49,000 children.

Food insecurity is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's measure of lack of access at times to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members.

"At River Bend Foodbank, we are constantly working to increase our capacity to close the Meal Gap," said Michael Miller, Executive Director. "While we were very pleased to increase our distribution to over 7.3 million meals in 2014, food insecurity rates have increased by an even greater amount."

Nationally, 15.8% of the population is food insecure, with 21.4% of children being food insecure. Furthermore, 43% of those who are food insecure are above the income threshold for food stamps, now called SNAP.

Other key findings local to River Bend's 22 counties:

·         49,710 children are food insecure, increasing from 20.6% to 21.5%.

·         131,900 people overall are food insecure, increasing from 12.4% to 12.9%.

·         The total number of meals missed increased from 22,196,800 to 23,346,200.

Map the Meal Gap 2015 is based on an analysis of statistics collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Census Bureau, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2013, the most recent year for which data is available. The study, commissioned by Feeding America, is a detailed analysis of the nation's food insecurity. An interactive map is available that allows viewers to explore the issue of hunger in Iowa/Illinois and across the country. The map along with an Executive Summary of the study can be found at riverbendfoodbank.org/hunger.htm and then click on "Map the Meal Gap."

"Map the Meal Gap 2015 provides unique insight into the prevalence of food insecurity in each county and congressional district in our nation," said Bob Aiken, CEO of Feeding America. "It will help policy makers and our elected officials understand the challenges they face in addressing hunger in the communities they serve."

The study is supported by the Founding Sponsor Howard G. Buffett Foundation as well as the ConAgra Foods Foundation and Nielsen. The food price data and analysis were provided by Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN), a global provider of information and insights. The lead researcher is Dr. Craig Gundersen, Professor of Agricultural and Consumer Economics at the University of Illinois, Executive Director of the National Soybean Research Laboratory, and member of Feeding America's Technical Advisory Group.

County and congressional district food-insecurity details and the full report are available at map.feedingamerica.org/ .

River Bend Foodbank is the largest hunger relief organization in the Quad Cities and surrounding communities, distributing more than 8.8 million lbs. of food annually to more than 300 charitable feeding programs throughout a 22-county service area in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois. Hunger programs include the Backpack Program which provides over 2000 children with nourishing food to take home on weekends during the school year, the Kids Café Program providing evening meals to children at three sites, Mobile Food Pantries which directly feed thousands of families each month, and School Pantries which serve needy children and their families.

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Public Welcome to Attend

WHAT: Grand Opening of River Bend Foodbank's new facilities

WHERE: River Bend Foodbank, 4010 Kimmel Drive, Davenport, IA 52802 (563-345-6490)

WHEN: Thursday, July 17, 2014 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM

Ribbon Cutting at 4:30PM

WHY: To celebrate the opening of our new warehouse which features a 3,600 square foot freezer/cooler unit that will provide nearly 4,000 cubic feet of frozen and cold storage. The space provides other efficiencies essential to operations, including 4,500 square feet of office space, an expanded "shopping area" for agencies and a large volunteer work area.

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"60-Day Hunger Drive" provides one million meals to alleviate hunger across Illinois and western Indiana

Annawan, Ill. - Since it was commissioned in January, a 60-year-old red tractor has traveled more than 1,300 miles and raised $35,192 for the River Bend Foodbank. Caren Laughlin, Director of Marketing at River Bend Foodbank accepted the donation during a presentation at Birkey's Annawan, Ill., location on Wednesday, April 23.

For two months, the restored Farmall Super MTA tractor served as an inventive for donations: individuals who gave $10 or more were entered into a drawing to win it. The tractor visited 12 Birkey's Farm Store locations from Feb. 3 to April 4 as part of the company's 60-Day Hunger Drive.

"This is an incredible effort on the part of Birkey's and its customers and we are very grateful," says Tom Laughlin, executive director of River Bend Foodbank. "Unfortunately the need for emergency food assistance in our outer counties continues to grow and families face tough decisions such as choosing between paying bills and buying food. The support from Birkey's will make a big difference in helping our neighbors in need."

The River Bend Foodbank received donations from 6 Birkey's stores, including Henry, Macomb, Galesburg, Polo, Prophetstown, and Annawan. Proceeds from each Birkey's location will be allocated to agencies in that store's local community.

More than 3,000 individuals and seven food banks participated in the drive, which raised $167,000 in donations–enough for one million meals.

"I am so proud of the way our employees worked together to contribute to neighbors in need," says Mike Hedge, President and CEO of Birkey's. "We hope that this donation will have a big impact, but we know that the need will continue long after our drive is over. We are grateful for the food banks' efforts to alleviate hunger year-round."

In the 47 counties served by Birkey's Farm Stores, Inc., more than 286,000 people are not able to access a nutritious meal when they want it, and one in five children is food insecure. Food banks selected to benefit from the drive were all part of the Feeding America network.

Ross Cluver of Buckley, Ill., won the tractor in the official drawing on Thursday, April 10.