Leket Israel
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Mission Statement
Leket Israel, the National Food Bank, is the leading food rescue organisation in Israel. Leket’s sole focus is rescuing healthy, surplus food and delivering it to those in need through 265 partner non-profit organisations. In 2022, Leket Israel rescued 1.9 million hot meals from hotels, corporate cafeterias and IDF army bases and 60 million lbs. of fresh agricultural produce from farmers and packing houses, feeding 234,000 Israelis in need each week.
About This Cause
Statistics over the last decade have been consistent in showing that over 20% of Israelis live below the poverty line. Israel is blighted by the highest gap between the rich and poor amongst OECD countries. In addition, its low minimum wage and inadequate social security payments are leading to a growing working poor population, and making it nearly impossible for the elderly and invalid, reliant on government assistance, to make ends meet. A recent study conducted by Bituach Leumi (Israel’s social security) shows that 20% of Israelis are suffering some level of nutritional insecurity, meaning that their diet is inadequate due to their economic situation. At the same time studies indicate that 30-50% of food produced in the west is destroyed rather than consumed. Leket Israel was established to address this paradox - rescuing from Israel’s food industry millions of lbs of excess food slated for destruction, and then redistributing this food to a network of 265 nonprofit organizations (NPOs) serving 234,000+ needy people weekly in the region from Nahariya in the north of the country to Eilat in the south. As an umbrella organization, Leket Israel also works to support its NPO partners through nutrition education, food safety, and capacity building projects. Leket Israel is apolitical and unaffiliated, and supports all population groups at risk in Israel regardless of gender, ethnic background, or religion. The organization's NPO partners span 70 Israeli cities throughout the country and include: Soup kitchens or community based organizations supplying food packages to the needy (70%), and after school programs or shelters for women, teenage girls, children at-risk, homeless shelters, and senior centers (30%). In addition to the population dense cities served in the central part of the country, the organization also serves the periphery including economically depressed communities such as Be'er Sheva, Sderot, and Kiryat Malachi in the south and Hazor, Tzfat, and Tiberias in the north, among others. Leket Israel’s primary activities and programs include: (a) food rescue, salvaging excess food from all sectors of Israel’s food industry for redistribution to NPOs, (b) a self-growing initiative, supplementing food rescue through a partnership with farmers that grows and harvests produce by volunteers for use of the needy, (c) nutrition education and guidance for NPOs and the needy they serve, including nutrition workshops, training and food menu consultation, and (d) food safety assessment, training, and capacity building support for NPOs. In 2022, Leket Israel rescued 1.9 million hot meals from hotels, corporate cafeterias and IDF army bases and 60 million lbs. of fresh agricultural produce from farmers and packing houses and distributed it to 265 nonprofit agency partners, feeding 234,000 Israelis in need each week. Leket Israel maintains a staff of around 110 full-time and 5 part-time employees, and mobilizes tens of thousands of volunteers annually across all of its food rescue and provision programs. In 2022, over 54,000 people from Israel and overseas volunteered in Leket Israel’s food rescue and provision programs (representing an estimated 100,000 volunteer hours). Volunteers provide crucial assistance to the organization: (1) participating in the harvesting of fruits and vegetables, (2) rescuing surplus meals, (3) food sorting/warehouse assistance, and (4) helping with data entry, mailings, pro-bono professional work, and other hands-on administrative projects. Leket Israel hosts volunteers from all sectors and everyone is welcome to join the organization and participate in its activities and projects.