The Food Bank of Northern Nevada started the Holiday Food Drive Season with a drive-by Holiday Food Drive Kick-Off event on Wednesday at the Grand Sierra Resort. 

Businesses, organizations and individuals could drive-by the south side of the Grand Sierra Resort to the lower parking lot, located off Mill Street, to receive all they need to start a food drive of their own. 

The food bank handed out 80 donation barrels to various organizations on Wednesday, some familiar faces but others brand new.

“It’s so exciting to see new organizations get involved with the Food Bank in whatever way they do, but we need the food so we’re excited their coming down, and it really helps us a lot when people can come pick up their barrels and deliver their food,” said Jocelyn Lantrip, the Director of Marketing for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada.

At the event, participants received their boxes or barrels to get started collecting non-perishable food items to help the hungry in our region.

“We’re always need produce and protein items so definitely hearty, soups, stews, chilis, canned tuna peanut butter all of those things are really important for food banks. But we do also need canned vegetables, canned fruits, cereal, pasta, rice all those things families can make healthy meals out of,” Lantrip adds.

The Food Bank of Northern Nevada says it is helping an average of 155,000 people each month with food and services, which is a record high for the organization.

The need in the community now is 30% higher than it was a few years ago and 70% higher now than it was before the pandemic.

Due to the high demand of food drive requests and the increased need in the community, the Food Bank is asking the community to help by picking up their barrels at this event.      

“Everything we do is about partnerships," said Lantrip. "We have 150 partner agencies that help us distribute the food every day. We have lots of community organizations and businesses that get together and help us with volunteering and food drives getting the word out outreach and it all adds up.”

For more information about the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, call 775-331-3663 or visit fbnn.org.