Our mission is to provide Pierce County with a consistent, diverse and nutritious food supply so that no person goes hungry.
Our History
EFN began as a program in 1982 when the leadership of FISH Food Banks, Tacoma Rescue Mission, Salvation Army, and Associated Ministries recognized a great need in our community to resource emergency food collectively. With guidance from Paul Bender, the Executive Director of the newly formed Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, and through the organizing efforts of Dennis Flannigan, EFN’s first Executive Director, the organization was created to serve as Pierce County’s central storage and distribution center for emergency food programs. In 1985, EFN was transferred as a program to Associated Ministries. Originally designed to meet a temporary need caused by the economic recession of the 1980’s, it became apparent in the early 1990’s that the need for such a community service had grown. In response, EFN became an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 1991.
In 2023, more than 220,000 visits were made each month to food programs in Pierce County.
Overall, more than 2.6 million visits were made to our partner programs during 2023. Emergency Food Network aided these visits by distributing 14.5 million pounds of food in 2023, providing millions of meals to hungry individuals in Pierce County.
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2020 - March
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2021 - July
In 2023 Emergency Food Network:
Distributed 14.5 million pounds of food through its Distribution Center to the food programs it serves.
Harvested 51,000 pounds of fresh organically grown fruits and vegetables through its farm.
Collected the equivalent of 372,000 meals through Food & Fund Drives.
Community Need
The Pierce County emergency food system includes more than 75+ food pantries and hot meal sites, providing over 12.2 million meals annually for over 2 million visits. In recent years, food programs have experienced an increase in the number of clients seeking services.
As the sole nonprofit food distributor located in Pierce County, many food programs are dependent on EFN for food. The majority of food is donated by farms and large corporations such as Fred Meyer, Carolina Logistics, QFC, and SuperValu, but EFN also acts as a Sub-Distributing Agency (SDA) for the USDA Commodity Food Program and purchases food through its Co-op Food Purchasing Program.
"Thank you for saving our lives. You all have been above and beyond, and you got us through this incredibly difficult time. Circumstances have changed and we're on the upside now, so we don't need help anymore, but I want to say thank you so much."
– Home Delivery Recipient
Financials
We appreciate every hour, can, and dollar donated to help achieve our mission of providing food for our neighbors in need.
Emergency Food Network is committed to providing food in the most efficient way possible. Our ability to procure donated food, purchase healthy food in bulk, and harvest fresh produce from our Mother Earth Farm allows EFN to distribute 2 meals for $1.
Emergency Food Network is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. Federal Tax ID (EIN): 943131776