Nutrition Campaign Florida! Young Motivators and adult volunteers provide nutritious food reaching 900+ people each week,
over 100,000 pounds of food each year!
According to www.feedingamerica.org food insecurity is on the rise in Columbia County, Florida:
In 2020, an estimated 9,330 individuals, 13.2% of the population experienced food insecurity.
In 2022, that number grew to 10,350 individuals, with 14.8% of the population affected.
Weekly Food Distribution
Nutrition Campaign Florida food pantry distribution begins at 12:00 noon on Tuesdays at the Fort White Community Center, 17579 SW State Road 47, Fort White, FL 32038. If the Community Center is in use (voting days), we set up in the field directly north of the building. We operate as a drive-through; volunteers will load your vehicle. Watch for parking instructions when you arrive.
To take food home, you must be a resident of Columbia County, Florida. For details, please come speak with us in person on a Tuesday between 11am and 1pm.
Food Pantry Operations
Tuesdays begin at the break of dawn, with a flurry of phone calls and a trip to Lake City or Jacksonville towing a trailer. Andreia never knows until she arrives what will be available that day. She may find salad and vegetables, fruit, pallets of canned goods, occasionally milk, juice, or frozen goods. It’s a mystery!
There’s also a second trailer of dry goods from storage – canned fruit and vegetables, beans or lentils or rice, perhaps grits or nuts, or other shelf-stable, nutritious foods that our volunteers bag for easy handling.
During harvest season, a semi truck may arrive with pallets of seasonal produce, sometimes corn, potatoes, squash, cabbage, even watermelon.
Once the trucks and trailers arrive, it’s time to count what we have and determine “how many of what” counts as a portion – so that we have enough for everyone. Young Motivators and adult volunteers divide and package as needed, carry and load, and verify each vehicle is loaded with the correct portion count. On semi-truck days we may literally move TONS of produce.
What people are saying about Tuesday Food Distribution
Young Motivators and Katie's Krops, contributing Fresh Produce
Current and Future Needs
Let's Work Together!
If you are able to help, please reach out today!