Home Blue Ridge Area Food Bank earns highest food rating from national organization
Local

Blue Ridge Area Food Bank earns highest food rating from national organization

Courtesy of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

Superior.

That’s the rating from the American Institute of Baking (AIB) for the four distribution centers of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

The food bank received the highest food safety ranking in an annual audit where each of the four warehouses received scoring in the 900s on a 1,000-point scale. A passing scale is 700 or above. Facilities with scores in the top 25 percent receive a Recognition of High Achievement — Superior.

“We’re very proud of our Operations team here at the Food Bank. This is a testament to the high-quality work and commitment our team displays every single day. We know it is vital that our guests, partners, and community trust the quality of food we provide. These Superior ratings from AIB, for each of our facilities, offer evidence of our commitment to food safety, health and cleanliness,” Chief Operating Officer Dave Kraft said.

Founded in 1981, the food bank is headquartered in Verona and is the largest organization in western and central Virginia working to alleviate hunger. An average of 109,500 individuals per month across 25 counties and eight cities are served by the food bank from distribution centers in Charlottesville, Lynchburg, Winchester and Verona. BRAFB is a member of Feeding America®, a national food bank association supporting more than 200 food banks across the United States, helping provide 5.2 billion meals to tens of millions of people through 60,000 agency partners.

The food bank was evaluated by auditors for operational compliance with food safety standards.

In the last year, BRAFB received, stored and distributed nearly 25 million pounds of food (including 7.2 million pounds of produce) through partner pantries, program site partners and the Food Bank’s mobile programs.

Rebecca Barnabi

Rebecca Barnabi

Rebecca J. Barnabi is the national editor of Augusta Free Press. A graduate of the University of Mary Washington, she began her journalism career at The Fredericksburg Free-Lance Star. In 2013, she was awarded first place for feature writing in the Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia Awards Program, and was honored by the Virginia School Boards Association’s 2019 Media Honor Roll Program for her coverage of Waynesboro Schools. Her background in newspapers includes writing about features, local government, education and the arts.