In Colorado, one in eight people, and one in seven children struggle with food insecurity, according to Feeding America, which is a national hunger-relief charity. With the proposed new restrictions on SNAP eligibility, Food Bank of the Rockies is preparing for growing needs.
This winter, the food bank will open a new distribution center in Aurora on East 38th Avenue that spans 270,000 square-feet. The new building will double the cold storage space the organization has for fresh and frozen food, quadruple the kitchen space and triple its volunteering capacity from the current main distribution center at 10700 E. 45th Ave. in Denver.
“We are seeing this increased need that’s coming at a time when just in the last several months, we have lost about 7% of Food Bank of the Rockies’ total food supply in government commodity food,” said Ering Pulling, the organization’s president and CEO. “That’s why this new building can’t come soon enough.”
The new facility emerges from Food Bank of the Rockies’ $75 million capital campaign, funded by donors. The food bank is 15% away from its financial goal and Cal Fulenwider, the capital campaign committee chair, and the Fulenwider Family Foundation are providing a $500,000 matching gift.
Amid a slash in government support, Pulling said the new facility is ahead of schedule and costs remain under budget, providing a hopeful glance into the future of the food bank’s new distribution center.
For Martha King, a volunteer for the food bank since 2020, the bigger space for volunteers to efficiently transport and package food is what she’s looking forward to the most.
“At (the Denver distribution center), we’re always bumping into each other. It’s like I-25 rush hour,” she said.
Food Bank of the Rockies is the largest food bank organization in the region, serving Wyoming and most of Colorado. Since establishing 47 years ago, the organization has grown alongside the growing needs of people facing hunger.
In 1978, Kathy Hackwith Growth began saving bread that was being tossed out by grocery stores, despite still being in good condition. She gave the bread to people and started the Colorado Food Clearing House, which then became Food Bank of the Rockies. Today, the food bank saves food from more than 800 stores and 150 food distributors across Colorado and Wyoming.
Pulling said the food bank has outgrown the current facility after operating there for 19 years — which has limited the amount of food donations it can accept and distribute, in addition to significantly impacting how many volunteers can be hosted.
The new facility is designed to increase capacity for food storage and volunteering opportunities, enhance efficiency and provide a larger array of fresh produce, Pulling said.
“(By) doubling our refrigeration capacity, I no longer have to worry about not having enough room when met with a great opportunity to bring in produce and perishables,” said Kelly Green, Food Bank of the Rockies’ chief operating officer. “Sometimes (at our current facility), a load appears and we can’t fit it in. So we have to say no and then they go somewhere else.”
In addition to the larger refrigeration area, some food donation receiving docks will also be refrigerated so that if fresh or frozen food arrives after the morning team of volunteers have completed their shift, the load is safely kept in the dock for the next morning.
“When you’re dealing with fresh produce, you’ve got to move with incredible velocity — something an old building simply didn’t allow us to do. But the new facility will allow us to change that, with more loading docks, greater access for our trucks and adequate staging throughout the building,” said Steven Kullberg, chief of staff at Food Bank of the Rockies.
The ability to retain fresh food is a huge advantage that also helps reduce food waste and promote sustainability, Green said.
The new facility will also have a 13-megawatt solar panel system that will aim to power 100% of the center’s energy. It will also store energy into batteries for back-up power systems in case of an outage, in addition to 10 dual-part vehicle charging stations which will power two trucks for local deliveries.
In February 2023, the solar panels that the food bank installed on top of the Grand Junction facility generated 100 kilowatts — enough power for an electric car to travel the globe 2.4 times — which is about a quarter of the building’s power.
The new distribution center will also include cardboard recycling via the cardboard bailing system, a machine that compresses and bundles cardboard waste into dense, manageable bales for recycling. The food bank said the revenue generated from recycling cardboard will be reinvested into providing more food.
“I don’t let anything go to waste,” said Patricia Heib, an Arapahoe County resident who has been coming to the Food Bank of the Rockies for groceries for nearly a year after being let go from the U.S. Postal Service.
Heib grew up in a family of six kids and looked after her younger siblings while her parents served in the military and worked. She learned how to make food last and dollars stretch, she said. When she lost her postal service job, she leaned on her church, which connected her with food resources to help her fill her pantry.
That’s when Heib discovered the Food Bank of the Rockies. She said at first, she felt embarrassed to ask for help, but now is comfortable using local resources to keep food on the table.
“I have a master’s degree in social work. I have worked in human services for years, helping people – and you know what, everybody needs help. Everybody is one paycheck away from needing help,” Heib said.