Volunteers to pack 4,000 holiday meal boxes in Geneva Saturday

More than 100 volunteers will gather Saturday to pack 4,000 holiday meals at Northern Illinois Food Bank in Geneva.

The kickoff of the annual Holiday Meal Box Program will be the first step toward the 50,000 meals they'll pack in the coming weeks for neighbors in need.

The meal boxes will be distributed in November and December by local food pantries throughout northern Illinois. Each box serves a family of six to eight and includes traditional trimmings for a holiday meal such as stuffing, gravy, dry rice and potatoes, canned beans and vegetables, and dessert mix. A whole turkey, ham, turkey breast or meatless option will be distributed with the box.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports the number of people living in food insecure households in 2022 increased by 31%.

Northern Illinois Food Bank's network of more than 900 food pantries, soup kitchens and feeding programs serves on average 500,000 neighbors a month and provides 80 million meals a year across its 13-county service area.

Information for anyone interested in volunteering at the food bank can be found on their website.