P-3833

Large Scale Food Packaging

Description

Financing

Documents

Photos

History Logs

Project Description

Country: USA

Location: Garden Grove

Total Budget: $9,627

Areas of Focus: Disease prevention and treatment, Water, sanitation and hygiene, Maternal and child health, Community economic development

Activity Type: Food/Agriculture: Volunteer Services

Summary: Commercial grade food tray sealing system to increase Bracken Kitchen's production volume and improve on product quality, for shelf stable and distribution-friendly packaging, to help 450,000 people struggling with food insecurity in Orange County, CA.


Prior to the pandemic, Feeding America/Second Harvest Food Bank reported approximately

310,000 people struggling with food insecurity in Orange County. Since the onset of COVID and the impact it has had on so many lives, that number has jumped to 450,000 people. Bracken's Kitchen was forced to pivot and respond to the immediate need with sustainable long-term plans. With high unemployment figures projected well into 2022, the need will remain high for some time. In the process of that response, we produced more than 1.74 million meals in 2020, almost triple our original goal for the entire year. At our current pace we project to prepare and distribute 2 million meals in 2021 and are planning for over 2 million meals in 2022.

Knowing the economic impact of COVID has hit children and elderly the hardest, our work is even more urgent. There are countless studies that detail the negative impact on young children when they are not provided a well- balanced diet. Our approach not only ensures a meal, but a high quality, made from scratch, tasty and nutritious meal - something so important to the vulnerable population. In addition, many employers implemented "Work From Home" for many of their staff during the pandemic and now find that it has worked well in efficiency as well as cost effectively without maintaining a large physical workspace. With many working professionals who do not cook at home, we see an increase of meal prep and/or grab-and-go demand.

As part of our Catering for a Cause service, we are looking to venture into grab-and-go

prepackaged meal services in partnership with local privately owned food providers such as

coffee shops and specialty food boutiques. Both City and County sponsored senior meal

programs are also on the rise and need to find cost effective and high-quality solutions to provide meals to qualified low-income seniors.

A new retail grocery concept is being planned with Second Harvest Food Bank where the store will offer groceries, daily household items, and prepared packaged meals for purchase at a below market prices. This will help bridge the food gap for many living in the brink of poverty. It will also relieve financial pressure for the hunger relief agencies and recovery kitchens like ours to shoulder the entire financial burden in food provision, production, and delivery. This new concept will provide more nutritional variety and work in tandem with our community feeding and packaged meal programs.

To increase our production volume and improve on product quality for shelf stable and

distribution-friendly packaging, investing in a commercial grade tray sealing system will be a great benefit for both the Catering for a Cause service as well as Community Feeding Programs. The Rotary Club of Villa Park members will be able to volunteer cooking and packaging meals. They will also be able to assist in our community feeds, serving these meals directly from our food truck.

Project Contact Person

District: 5320

Rotary Club of: Villa Park

Primary Contact: Charlie Gallagher

Email: charlie.gallagher@thrivent.com

Project Status

Completed
This project is "Completed". This means the project has been implemented and the report was accepted by the district leadership. The project will stay listed on this website as a testimony of the achievements of the project partners.

Project listed for the 2021-22 Rotary Year.

Proposed Financing

Existing Contributions Towards This Project

Date

Cash

DDF

Total

Villa Park (5320)

17-May-21

$5,350

$4,277

$9,627

Total

$5,350

$4,277

$9,627

Project Supporting Documents

Project Photos

History Log Entries

17-May-21

by Charlie Gallagher

System Entry: Creation of project page.

17-May-21

by Charlie Gallagher

System Entry: Project is now "Fully Pledged".

17-May-21

by Charlie Gallagher

System Entry: Project sent for club signatures.

17-May-21

by Vito Canuso

System Entry: Project signed by Vito Canuso.

17-May-21

by Charlie Gallagher

System Entry: Project signed by Charlie Gallagher.

18-May-21

by Stacey Giannoulis

System Entry: Signature Process cancelled by user.

18-May-21

by Stacey Giannoulis

System Entry: Project sent for club signatures.

18-May-21

by Charlie Gallagher

System Entry: Project signed by Charlie Gallagher.

18-May-21

System Entry

System Entry: Project signed by Vito Canuso.

28-Jul-21

by Stacey Giannoulis

System Entry: Project approved by the District Approval Committee.

22-Aug-21

by Helen Maxwell

System Entry: Check for DDF payment issued by Foundation Treasurer.

2-Mar-22

by Charlie Gallagher

Projected was completed on 9/30/2021 at Bracken's Kitchen: 13941 Nautilus Dr. Garden Grove, CA 92843

23-May-22

by Charlie Gallagher

System Entry: Project has been implemented and final report uploaded.

12-Jun-22

by Stacey Giannoulis

System Entry: Final report approved by the District Approval Committee.

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