Food Bank of Delaware to begin new chapter at 222 Lake Drive in April

March 19, 2019

The Food Bank of Delaware announced today that the organization will begin moving from the 14 Garfield Way warehouse to its new facility at 222 Lake Drive in Newark starting the week of April 8. It’s anticipated that the organization will be fully operational in the new facility by April 15.

Generous supporters and the sale of the current building have helped to raise close to $13 million, but an additional $2.7 million is needed for the $15.5 million project.

“Thanks to our community, we’ve accomplished so much — especially considering the limited, inefficient space in the outdated facility we currently occupy,” said President and CEO Patricia Beebe. “Over the past 30 years, we have developed a well-rounded approach to solving hunger that goes beyond basic food distribution – making a more meaningful and lasting impact on the people we serve. This building will allow us to do so much more for Delaware, but we need our community to assist us in raising the remaining amount. Contributing to this campaign is an investment in Delaware’s most vulnerable communities.”

The new facility will enable the organization to increase its offerings of programs that focus on not only meeting the immediate food needs of people, but also programs that help break the cycle of poverty that perpetuates hunger in our community.

The 80,000-square-foot facility features a much larger, temperature-controlled cold storage area to safely store an estimated eight million additional pounds of produce… produce that would have to be turned away at 14 Garfield Way due to limited infrastructure and a hard-to-access loading dock for tractor trailers. Thanks to the additional space, the Food Bank of Delaware will also be able to expand workforce development initiatives in food service, warehousing, and agriculture through Delaware Food Works. More classrooms, training kitchens, warehouse space, and the 3.5-acre Corteva Agriscience farm will provide more students with job skills to secure gainful employment.

The new facility will also feature the Discover Café, a full-service café serving breakfast and lunch. It will provide a revenue-generating source of income for the Food Bank of Delaware, while also providing job opportunities for graduates from The Culinary School, the Food Bank’s 14-week food service training program. The café will open later in May.

An on-site clean room will be used to process bulk foods into ready-to-eat portions and a new on-site food pantry will be available to serve those in need.

To learn more about the relocation project or to make a donation, please visit www.aboldfutureforfbd.org.

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