Ozarks Food Harvest to receive $250K from state

Ozarks Food Harvest is receiving an additional $250,000 through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which is administered by the Missouri Department of Social Services.

The funding is part of a $1 million increase provided to the six regional food banks that make up the Missouri Association of Food Banks, according to a news release. The Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program is administered by DSS.

The Missouri Association of Food Banks also includes the Food Bank of Central and Northeast Missouri in Columbia; the Harvesters Community Food Network in Kansas City; the Southeast Missouri Food Bank in Cape Girardeau; the St. Louis Area Food Bank; and the Second Harvest Community Food Bank in St. Joseph.

Gov. Jay Nixon announced the additional funds during a Nov. 8 visit to Ozarks Food Harvest. Officials also promoted the annual Share the Harvest program, a partnership between the Conservation Federation, the Missouri Department of Conservation, regional food banks, local food pantries and meat processors to provide venison donated by hunters to needy families. The Missouri deer season, for firearms, begins this weekend, according to the Department of Conservation.

“For 20 seasons, Share the Harvest has been an important part of Missouri’s legacy of sportsmanship and conservation,” Nixon said in the release. “I thank all the hunters who have made Share the Harvest so successful over the past two decades, and I encourage even more Missouri hunters to get involved this year to help our neighbors in need.”

During the last hunting season, roughly 6,100 deer were processed through Share the Harvest, allowing needy families to share in more than 350,000 pounds of venison.[[In-content Ad]]