Ozarks Food Harvest announces $800K investment amid government shutdown

Ozarks Food Harvest is responding to the ongoing federal government shutdown by investing $800,0000 in its food network.

That's according to a news release issued this morning, which indicated the Springfield-based nonprofit has purchased $500,000 in additional food and released $300,000 in grants to its network of charities. Ozarks Food Harvest additionally is hosting drive-thru grocery giveaways for federal employees, with groceries provided for more than 1,200 people to date.

“We’re treating this shutdown like a disaster, and we will provide support as long as it’s needed,” said Bart Brown, president and CEO of Ozarks Food Harvest, in the release. “We want to ensure families don’t have to worry about putting food on the table during this crisis.”

Ozarks Food Harvest spokesperson Jordan Browning said the $500,000 in food purchases is on top of $500,000 that’s typically invested for that purpose at this time of year.

“This expense was unbudgeted, and we anticipate spending more if the shutdown continues,” Browning said via email.

Ozarks Food Harvest officials say that in its 28-county service area, nearly 23,000 federal employees and 135,000 recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, may be impacted by the government shutdown.

As it meets increased demands for food, Ozarks Food Harvest has a $40,000 matching grant from Community Foundation of the Ozarks, the Darr Family Foundation and the Musgrave Foundation to assist operations, according to the release.

Two additional grocery distributions for federal employees are planned on Nov. 8 and Nov. 10.