Donation to hunger-relief agencies includes 40,000 pounds of spuds

Second Harvest Inland Northwest ushered in the season of the Irish with a mega-donation of 40,000 pounds of potatoes.

The truckload of fresh potatoes was delivered Tuesday, courtesy of a Burlington, Wash., farmer and Rotary First Harvest, a Seattle-based nonprofit.

“Potatoes are just a wonderful way to extend menus and provide extra nutrients to a meal,” said Ann Price, of Second Harvest.

The donation was part of five semi-trucks packed with 200,000 pounds of produce that Rotary First Harvest delivered to Washington food banks in one day. Most of the 50-pound bags of potatoes will be distributed to hunger-relief agencies in Spokane County and North Idaho, Price said.

Food banks will divide the bags into smaller, family-friendly portions, while cooks at homeless shelters and meal sites will use the spuds in recipes.

Initially, the West Side Rotary club asked gardeners to plant a row to feed the hungry. Soon, they were brokering donations from farmers, who agreed to plant a few extra acres to battle hunger.

The organization’s efforts result in several truckloads of fresh produce delivered each year to Second Harvest, free of charge. “Rotary First Harvest has really worked hard to find good sources of products and find ways to get them out to agencies to around the state,” Price said.