Community collaboration helps SNAP stretch further at annual ‘Fill Your Pantry’ event
KTVZ
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — This weekend’s Fill Your Pantry event was a huge success, organizers say, fueling food access across Central Oregon, with over $37,000 in free food and free food vouchers distributed to local community members.
Through the “Fill All Pantries” campaign, attendees stocked up on enough meat, bread, jam and produce to create 6,677 meals – all at no cost.
Combined with Double-Up-Food Bucks and Protein Perks SNAP match programs, community members were able to head into winter with bags full of fresh, local, and nourishing food grown by regional farmers and crafted by local producers.
With SNAP benefits reinstated in Oregon just hours before the event, hundreds of shoppers were able to take full advantage of food access programs at Fill Your Pantry. SNAP recipients received up to $100 in Double Up Food Bucks and up to $20 in Protein Perks matches – helping stretch food dollars.
Amid ongoing economic uncertainty, this event offered a vital chance to stock up on locally produced groceries ahead of winter. The Bend Farmers Market reported more than 2 1/2 times the usual number of SNAP transactions compared to previous years, underscoring the growing community need for events that make healthy, local food accessible to everyone.
“The success of Fill Your Pantry reflects the power of community collaboration. Local farmers, food producers, volunteers, partner organizations, and community donors came together to make nutritious, locally grown food accessible for everyone,” Said HDFFA Program Director Ann Pistacchi-Peck. “We hope the momentum from this event will help strengthen future efforts to connect Central Oregonians with the region’s growers and food businesses, ensuring that healthy, local food remains accessible to all our neighbors.”
Central Oregon Fill Your Pantry is a bulk buying farmers market designed to help community members stock up on locally produced food for the winter. This year’s event took place on Saturday, November 8th, from 11am-3pm at the Deschutes County Fairgrounds in Redmond, Oregon.
HDFFA is a 501(c)3 non-profit serving Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson Counties as well as the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs. HDFFA’s mission is to support a healthy and thriving food & farm network through education, collaboration, and inclusion. For more info visit hdffa.org. To donate visit hdffa.org/donate