Truck Drivers Give Lift to Needy, Will Haul Food to Cities for Free

Local hunger-relief agencies got a much-needed lift from the California Trucking Assn. on Friday when the group volunteered to haul donated food from the state’s farms and processing plants to urban outlets that feed the needy.

The program, bringing together commercial freight firms and food banks, is said to be the first of its kind in the nation.

Charity officials estimate that food distribution to the poor in Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties could increase by as much as 40% with the truckers’ participation. The program debuts at a time when area soup kitchens, shelters and pantries are taxed with a heavy seasonal demand for food assistance.

“The coming on board of the California truckers in a systematic way is a watershed event for us, it is major,” said Eugene L. Boutilier, United Way’s emergency services issues manager.

The agreement was spurred by a United Way-funded project, Food Partnership, which coordinates regional anti-hunger efforts. A two-year study by United Way, released in March, identified the lack of bulk-food transportation as the biggest problem facing Southern California’s hunger-relief programs.

Jerry D. Lundberg, chairman of the 2,500 member truckers’ group, said that 17 freight companies have agreed to haul food from donors to areas of need. He hopes the total ultimately will increase to 150 firms.

“If enough trucking companies get involved in this project, then these charities will not have to worry about paying to have food moved around ever again,” Lundberg said. “We’re making a commitment to helping the hungry. . . . And this effort will save a lot of money and, hopefully, save a lot of people.”

Initially, 10 to 12 truck trips, with a total value of $5,000 in terms of labor, fuel and operating costs, will be donated to Food Partnership each week, Lundberg estimated.

The Santa Fe Springs-based truckers’ association, once notified that a shipment of food needs to be transported from, say, Ventura to Los Angeles, will then radio its members to see who has an empty or partially laden vehicle in the vicinity. The driver will then pick up the donation as a part of a day’s normal route.

The Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, site of Friday’s announcement, is one of several clearinghouses that will benefit from the program. The organization distributes donated food to 415 charitable agencies, which in turn provide as many as 600,000 meals a month, according to Doris Bloch, executive director. As much as 12% of the average food bank’s operating budget is devoted to transporting food.

With the aid of the big-rig trucks, Bloch said, the amount of food that reaches the poor will increase substantially.

“Right now, we can get $18 worth of food into the community for every dollar that we spend. With the help of the truckers, I think that figure will rise to $25 of food for our $1,” Bloch said.

Another problem, the shortage of fresh produce in urban outlets for the needy, will also be addressed by the volunteer truckers. Their participation will permit a greater flow of surplus fruit and vegetables from distant agricultural areas to Los Angeles and Orange counties.

“This is an important development because we can now provide more produce to our sister food banks in the cities,” said Dan Wakelee, director of Food Share, a Ventura County food bank whose volunteers collect discarded fruit and vegetables from farms. “In turn, we’ll get more packaged and processed foods (from the cities), which we need.”