Fresh milk offers nutrients to help kids grow up healthy and happy. The USDA recommends children receive three servings of dairy each day. But for families struggling to put food on the table, milk is often out of reach. At Gleaners, milk is the most requested item by those we serve, yet it is rarely donated.
Feeding America estimates that 300,000 children living in southeast Michigan face the chronic stress of hunger. Providing these young kids and their families with nutritious food is a top priority at Gleaners. It has been our focus to acquire and distribute as much fresh milk as possible. These efforts have increased our milk distribution from zero gallons in 2015 to more than 415,000 gallons in 2019.
In December, Gleaners received a $20,000 grant from the Children’s Foundation in support of our weekly fresh milk distribution to children and families across southeast Michigan.
Last year, Gleaners distributed eight truckloads of milk per month to children and families through 96 school food mobile pantry sites and our network of 519 partner agencies. With logistic and delivery models already in place, our team has the ability and expertise to expand our distribution of fresh milk in 2020.
The support of the Children’s Foundation will help Gleaners acquire the nutritious milk needed to meet this goal. We are grateful for this partnership that helps fulfill our shared mission to deliver nutritious food in order to improve the health of children in Michigan.
Find more information about our milk distribution and join the M.I.L.K movement here.
This project was made possible by funding provided by the Children’s Foundation.
