The Emergency Food Network (EFN) has been working since 1982 "to provide a reliable food supply so that no person in Pierce County goes hungry."

Description:
Each month in Pierce County, more than 130,000 people seek emergency food assistance. Emergency Food Network provides food and other essentials at no cost to over 70 food banks, hot meal sites and shelters for distribution to low-income families and individuals.

The Emergency Food Network is comprised of the Distribution Center in Lakewood, the Cannery Project in Kent, the 8-acre organic Mother Earth Farm in Orting, and the Orchard in Roy. Through these operations, EFN distributed more than $13.3 million worth of food and other essentials in 2007. The Cannery produced 40,000 cans of produce and the Mother Earth Farm harvested more than 162,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Emergency Food Network operates with a staff of ten full-time and one part-time employees. It is joined in its work by a dedicated corps of 1,600 volunteers who gave more than 18,000 hours to the organization last year. Due to a low administrative and fundraising overhead of 3.4 percent EFN is able to distribute $12 dollars worth of food to local feeding programs for every dollar donated.

These innovative efforts combine to make the Emergency Food Network the only non-profit emergency food distribution center in the country able to take food straight from the ground to the tables of those in need.

Please join us in the fight against hunger.

History:
EFN began as a program of The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation in 1982 to serve as Pierce County’s central storage and distribution center for emergency food programs. In 1985 it was transferred as a program to Associated Ministries. Originally designed to meet a temporary need caused by the economic recession of the 1980’s, it became apparent in the early 1990’s that the need for such a community service had grown. In response, EFN became an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 1991.

Contact person: Joanna Rasmussen, Executive Assistant, (phone), (email)
Office fax number: (253) 984-9368

Address:

3318 92nd Street South Lakewood, WA 98499-9328 (See a map)

Directions:

From I-5 take exit 127 and follow the signs to South Tacoma Way--Northbound. Stay in the right hand lane and continue north to 92nd Street South (7-11 store at the corner). At 92nd Street turn right. Go east on 92nd. . . (more)   Nearest Bus Stop: Corner of 92nd & S. Tacoma Way, 5 minute walk