NDA teams up with Food Bank of Northern Nevada and Three Square Food Bank to serve hungry Nevadans

The Nevada Department of Agriculture (NDA) announced new agreements with Food Bank of Northern Nevada (FBNN) and Three Square food bank to provide emergency food assistance to food-insecure individuals in Nevada.

“These partnerships with FBNN and Three Square will allow us to use federal funding more efficiently, providing more frequent access to emergency food assistance to those who need it,” Patricia Hoppe, NDA Food and Nutrition division deputy administrator, said. “This distribution model is on par with what other states are doing and has proven successful.”

The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and provides low-income individuals and households with surplus commodities donated by the USDA. TEFAP is designed to supplement the nutritional needs of program-eligible individuals who may also be participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); or Food Distribution Programs on Indian Reservations (FDPIR).

FBNN will provide emergency food assistance to the 95,000 food-insecure individuals in Churchill, Douglas, Elko, Eureka, Humboldt, Lander, Lyon, Mineral, Pershing, Storey, Washoe and White Pine Counties.

“We are so proud to have been chosen by the state of Nevada to be the TEFAP distributor for all of northern Nevada,” Al Brislain, FBNN president and CEO, said. “This will enable us to provide more food to families facing hunger and to work with the Nevada Department of Agriculture to improve the charitable food network in our region.”

Three Square will provide emergency food assistance to the more than 279,000 food-insecure people in Clark, Esmeralda, Lincoln and Nye Counties.

“September is Hunger Action Month – a month where people all over the country stand together to fight hunger,” Brian Burton, Three Square president and CEO, said. “This partnership is a perfect blending of our emerging strategies to meet the needs of food insecure families and individuals in southern Nevada.”

The NDA, FBNN and Three Square are committed to a seamless transition, ensuring no gaps in service for the local distributing agencies and people they serve. FBNN and Three Square will honor existing food distribution schedules through the end of 2017 and take on new contracts with local partners.

The Nevada Department of Agriculture promotes a business climate that is fair, economically viable and encourages environmental stewardship that serves to protect food, fiber and human health and safety through effective service and education. The NDA includes the five divisions of Administration, Animal Industry, Consumer Equitability, Food and Nutrition and Plant Industry.

Food Bank of Northern Nevada (FBNN) is a regional food distribution center and support system for more than 140 non-profit partner agencies across a 90,000 square mile service area. FBNN’s mission is to feed the hungry today and solve hunger for tomorrow through community partnership.

Established in 2007 to provide hunger relief, Three Square Food Bank offers wholesome, nutritious food to nonprofit and faith-based organizations, schools and feeding sites that serve a wide range of southern Nevadans. A national model project inspired by founder Eric Hilton with a grant provided by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Three Square is a community collaborative partnership with businesses, nonprofit agencies, food distributors, higher education institutions, the Clark County School District, governmental entities, the media and thousands of volunteers to efficiently and effectively work together to serve those in our community struggling with hunger. Three Square currently provides more than 36 million meals, the equivalent of more than 44 million pounds of food and grocery product – per year through a network of more than 1,600 community partners. Three Square is a member of the Feeding America network of food banks. For additional information, visit threesquare.org. For the latest news and events on Three Square, visit Facebook and follow them on Instagram and Twitter (@threesquarelv).

Contact information

Nevada Department of Agriculture

Rebecca Allured

rallured@agri.nv.gov | (775) 353-3603 

Food Bank of Northern Nevada

Jocelyn Lantrip

jlantrip@fbnn.org | (775) 331-3663

Three Square Food Bank

Joe Hamm

jham@threesquare.org | (702) 644-3663 x333

Alexis Merz

amerz@threesquare.org | (702) 644-3663 x344