As the economy continues to make a sluggish recovery, families in Washington still find themselves struggling with food insecurity. In an effort to address hunger needs in our region, Washington’s own Wilcox Family Farms delivered 86,000 eggs to Emergency Food Network in Lakewood, WA on Tuesday, March 19 at 9 a.m., to help these families in need.

Brent Wilcox, Owner/CEO of Wilcox Family Farms summed up their commitment: “Wilcox is dedicated to helping our surrounding neighbors.”

A donation of this magnitude helps EFN to provide a healthy, nutritious source of protein to the 67 food banks, meal sites, and shelters in Pierce County’s emergency food system. These programs see an average of 115,000 client visits each month, and total visits reached a record 1,381,602 in 2012.

“We are grateful to Wilcox Family Farms and their generous donation to the Emergency Food Network,” said Helen McGovern, Executive Director of Emergency Food Network.  “This annual donation enables us to provide much needed protein to our community food partners and allows emergency agencies to distribute to those in need.”

“We’re thrilled to donate much-needed protein to Emergency Food Network Food, just in time for the Easter holiday,” stated Wendi Shaw of Wilcox Farms. “Wilcox Farms is a fourth generation family business, and we take pride in giving back to our local community.”

A full 86% of the food that EFN distributes qualifies as healthy and nutritious, with the remaining 14% falling under the category of beverages or other sources such as food drive donations. Fruits and vegetables account for 53% of the food distributed, and protein sources like eggs, turkey, pork, chicken, and beef make up 6% of the 15.1 million pounds of food distributed annually by EFN in Pierce County.