Supported by grant funding and its new Bowling Green facility, the regional food bank Feeding America Kentucky’s Heartland has since November expanded the amount of close-to-shelf-life food it rescues from grocers and then distributes to pantries and meal programs by 15%.

FAKH Executive Director Charles Dennis anticipates that the 15% increase is the new normal for FAKH’s food rescue — where the food bank last fiscal year distributed 6 million pounds of fresh, frozen and shelf-stable foods close to shelf life to local food organizations across its 42-county service area. Dennis said FAKH’s opening of its Bowling Green distribution center last month, coupled with a grant from Walmart in late March that helped afford a truck, has enabled this expansion by increasing days of distribution from three to five.

The Walmart Retail Agency Capacity Grant supplied $750,000 to FAKH and other funding to 12 other food banks part of the nonprofit Feeding America — funds intended to supply equipment, vehicles and staff for FAKH’s 200–plus partner agencies such as food pantries and meal programs to expand food rescue. Beyond purchasing the truck, FAKH has used some funds for equipment, including refrigerators and freezers, to support food rescue regionwide.

FAKH plans to meet with its Warren County partner agencies in Bowling Green next month to assess how to best support them here — and, with some grant funds remaining, there’s still potential to purchase more local refrigeration, Dennis said.

“We want to move a little bit beyond the one-on-one questions and talk as a collective of partners on what are the needs collectively — and then move into kind of divvying up the equipment and resources in that matter,” Dennis said. “As we see that increase (in food distribution), it’s asking them: ‘Is this more that you can handle right now? Is another freezer what you need in order to hold enough product with this increase?”

FAKH has 18 months from its receipt of the grant to spend the funding, Dennis said.

On a recent day, the Meadowland Baptist Church food pantry distributed several hundred pounds of food picked up through FAKH’s rescue program — and they do the pickups all week, said Carol Shaw, who runs the Meadowland program. They’ll go to five or six stores, mainly dollar stores and Kroger, to pick up mostly fruits, vegetables, meat and dairy, with a minority being canned goods.

“It’s very important: There are a lot of people who wouldn’t have fresh fruits and vegetables and things like that if it wasn’t for this program,” Shaw said.

Among the younger families who come to the Meadowland pantry, Shaw will especially see single mothers. But mostly, they’re helping either grandparents trying to take care of their grandkids or the elderly trying to make ends meet on limited income, Shaw said.

The Greenwood Church Park of Christ food pantry likely distributes a ton of food through the FAKH rescue program monthly, according to its pantry manager Hope Baker. Coordinating with FAKH, the pantry will pick up food at Aldi and Target on Tuesday, Panera Bread on Wednesday, Kroger and Target on Thursday, and Kroger and Meyers on Friday to make it happen.

“It’s all been really helpful to feeding people,” Baker said.