JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The numbers are in, and they are bigger than ever.

Thanks to generous donations made by hundreds of local community members the 2022 WJXT Positively JAX food drive to benefit the Feeding Northeast Florida food bank shattered the total number of meals donated in 2021. A combination of in-person and online donations will provide over 70,000 meals to families in eight northeast Florida counties facing food insecurity.

2022 Totals

• 15,385 lbs. of food = 12,820 meals
• $9,629 in online food drive donations = 57,774 meals
• 70,594 total meals

2021 Totals

• 21,164 lbs. of food = 18,026 meals
• $5,340 in online food drive donations = 32,000 meals
• 50,026 total meals

Close to 237,000 people in Northeast Florida experienced food insecurity in 2021.

Here’s how that number breaks down:

• 1 in 7 people
  
• 1 in 5 children (76,000)
  
• According to the USDA, 53 food deserts exist across Feeding Northeast Florida’s 8-county service area – 38 within Duval County alone

Food insecurity is defined as the state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food.

You can still help by donating online at Feeding Northeast Florida’s virtual food drive at https://fooddriveonline.org/feedingnefl/index.php?s=WJXTNews4JAX

The site is set up to resemble a grocery store where donors can move products off the shelf and scan at the register.