The Food Bank of Northern Nevada says rising food and fuel costs have reduced the impact of donations: Each dollar now provides two meals instead of the three meals the organization previously advertised.

The change reflects higher operating expenses facing food banks across the country, Jocelyn Lantrip, the Food Bank of Northern Nevada's director of marketing, told 2 News Nevada in a report published Nov. 7.

“The truth is that food banks across the country are facing higher food costs, definitely higher fuel costs, higher costs all the way around,” Lantrip told the station. “This is affecting that meal claim and we are no exception.”

The food bank's Food and Fund Drives page also lists the current donation impact as two meals for every dollar donated.

Higher fuel costs affect rural deliveries

The organization has been spending $7,000 more per month on fuel since March, according to an October report by KUNR Public Radio. In some months, fuel costs alone reach $25,000.

Most of the food bank's vehicles run on diesel. The average price in Nevada reached about $6.86 per gallon on Oct. 21, according to AAA data cited by KUNR — nearly $3 more than a year earlier.

Food bank truck driver Eltora Lintz told KUNR that the cost of his out-of-town deliveries has roughly doubled. He loads produce, eggs, canned goods and bread into a semi-truck each Thursday morning, beginning as early as 6:30 a.m.

The food bank's fleet covers a wide service area, including Ely, Mammoth, Susanville and Alturas, Lantrip told KUNR. The distance makes higher diesel prices particularly costly.

Despite the increase in expenses, the food bank has no immediate plans to reduce services. Lantrip told 2 News it continues to provide food for about 143,000 people each month and is monitoring costs.

But she told KUNR she worries that rising expenses could eventually make it harder to keep enough food available for everyone who needs it.

More than 542,000 people in Nevada face hunger, according to Feeding America's state-level estimates. More than 100 food pantries rely on deliveries from the Food Bank of Northern Nevada, KUNR reported.

Elko hub aims to reduce delivery costs

The food bank is working on a rural distribution hub in Elko that could reduce the distance its trucks travel to serve northeastern Nevada.

Lintz told KUNR that the facility would allow him to drop off a trailer loaded with food in Elko and return with an empty trailer, rather than making the same long delivery route to outlying communities.

The food bank says the Elko Rural Food Hub is intended to strengthen food distribution in the region. Its first phase is focused on serving partner food pantries and meal programs in Elko County.

How to help the food bank

The Food Bank of Northern Nevada is asking residents to support its work through monetary donations, food contributions and volunteer time. Several community events are scheduled ahead of Thanksgiving:

  • Friday, Nov. 13: The Thanks4Giving Food Drive runs from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Walmart on Kietzke Lane. The drive-through event will collect food donations for the food bank. The organization lists the event on its Food and Fund Drives page.
  • Sunday, Nov. 22: Peppermill Reno's annual Pie It Forward Bake Sale is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the hotel lobby at 2707 S. Virginia St. Pies are $10 each, with proceeds benefiting the Food Bank of Northern Nevada.
  • Thursday, Nov. 26: The Wobble Before You Gobble 10K, 5K and 1-mile walk begins at 9 a.m. at Wingfield Park, 2 S. Arlington Ave. in Reno. The Food Bank of Northern Nevada is a charitable beneficiary of the Thanksgiving morning event.

Residents can also find ways to donate money, food or time through the food bank's website.