Join 20,000 Volunteers Making a Difference: How Food Lifeline’s Hunger Solution Center Supports Food Banks in the Fight Against Hunger

SEATTLE — Food prices are on the rise. As costs for eggs, dairy, meat, and other essentials climb, more people are turning to local food banks for help.

Food Lifeline, which supplies food to local banks, has seen a significant shift in demand. Before the pandemic, many people visited food banks occasionally. Now, it’s common for them to come in weekly.

In fact, demand soared by 25% in 2024. About 10 million visits to Food Lifeline’s 300 partner food banks were recorded this year, up from 8 million in 2023.

Mark Coleman, Food Lifeline’s marketing director, shared that the organization spent an additional $800,000 this year just to buy more food. This is crucial to ensure that food banks have enough to serve their guests.

Food Lifeline collaborates with retailers to gather excess food. Recently, they received large shipments of dairy and other refrigerated items from Amazon Fresh and Safeway-Albertsons. Volunteers worked hard, sorting the food into categories and preparing it for distribution.

Once sorted, the food is inventoried so that each food bank can order what they need. Volunteers, like 14-year-old Elise Woodey, understand the importance of their work. Elise said, “It helps people in need. I may not know who will receive it, but I know it will go to someone who deserves it.”

While Elise worked with rice, other volunteers sorted pears, tossing out the bad ones and packing the good ones into boxes. This hands-on approach helps Food Lifeline manage large donations effectively. For instance, a recent truckload of potatoes from a local farmer helps the organization keep good food out of landfills while serving the community.

“Our volunteers sort and package everything, and then food banks can order what they need,” Coleman explained.

Bailey Ellison, another volunteer, enjoyed his recent experience, noting that they repackaged almost 300 pounds of rice in just two hours. He chose Food Lifeline for its flexible volunteer schedule, which offers multiple two-hour sessions each day.

It takes about 20,000 volunteers to keep the food flowing through the warehouse. The organization works hard to ensure no food sits around for long; what’s packed today is often ready for food banks within a few days.

Perishable items move quickly, and Coleman mentioned that the entire inventory at the Hunger Solution Center turns over every 30 days. This rapid turnover is essential to meet the needs of over 1.7 million Washingtonians who turn to food banks each year.

Ultimately, the Hunger Solution Center adjusts daily to make sure that there’s food available for everyone who visits their partner food banks.