Lynchburg food bank gets new cooler

Kroger donated $30,000 to Lynchburg branch of Blue Ridge Area for new cooler

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Lynchburg branch of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank has a new cooler it says will help it do a better job keeping produce fresh for the 18,000 people it serves in Central Virginia.
 
Kroger, among the nation's largest chains, donated $30,000 to the organization for the new cooler.
 
Compared to with the one it replaces, the new cooler is much wider and taller, meaning it can hold in more food.
 
Organizers say it will also help keep their produce fresh.
 
 “We couldn’t stage our produce orders and if we did we have to stage them ahead of time, but they’d be in ambient temperature,” James Quade, Lynchburg branch manager, said.
 
“Having a new cooler will allow us to double the capacity to distribute fresh produce, which is so vital for people with diet-related diseases,” Michael McKee, CEO of Blue Ridge Area Food Bank, said.

Last year, the Lynchburg area food bank distributed 1 million pounds of food out of the smaller cooler and hopes to do more with the new one.Â