FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 26, 2020

Media Inquiries:
Vivien Minton
Marketing Director
vminton@foodshare.com
(805) 822-8027

FOOD SHARE OFFERING POP-UP PANTRIES TO MEET GROWING DEMAND

Ventura County’s food bank is coordinating efforts to provide pop-up pantries as food pantry closures continue.

(OXNARD, CA) Food Share, Ventura County’s food bank, is coordinating a county-wide effort to provide pop-up pantries in the wake of multiple food pantry closures. More than 20 existing pantries in the county have been forced to close their doors as the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak continues to grow.

“We are working on providing alternative locations for low-income people experiencing food insecurity to be able to access nutritious food,” says Monica White, President & CEO of Food Share. “We are immensely grateful to everyone who is working with us to provide temporary distribution sites, including the Conejo Recreation & Park District, the Camarillo Airport and the Ventura County Fairgrounds.”

Details of the new distribution sites along with pantry closures are available at www.foodshare.com/COVID19. The lists will be updated as new information unfolds. Food boxes will be available for low-income families and individuals, but will be limited to one box per household. “We will continue to add distributions as needed to support our community and our network of pantries,” says White. “Our mission to lead the fight against hunger in Ventura County is more important than ever.”

Food Share continues to actively recruit volunteers, donors and food. For more information on how you can help Food Share to feed those in need, please visit www.foodshare.com.

For more information:

  • Up-to-date information on temporary pantry closures, pop-up distribution sites and emergency volunteer opportunities will be posted at foodshare.com/covid19 and on Food Share’s social media channels.
  • For information on free Senior Food Kit distributions go to foodshare.com/seniorkits.
  • You can make a donation in support of Food Share at foodshare.com/give.

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About Food Share of Ventura County:

Since 1978, Food Share has been feeding the hungry in Ventura County. It all began when eight friends banded together to provide food to those in need in Ventura, CA. The early philanthropic movement started in a family garage, quickly outgrew a donated fire station in Saticoy and now operates in Oxnard, CA with two warehouses with a combined 36,000 square feet. Today, staff and volunteers distribute over 13 million pounds of food, or over 11 million meals, annually through its 190 pantry and program partners. As Ventura County’s food bank, Food Share provides food for 75,000 hungry friends and neighbors monthly. Food Share is a member of Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief organization, as well as the California Association of Food Banks. For more information about Food Share, visit www.foodshare.com. Find us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.