WACO, Texas (KXXV) — The Central Texas Food Bank's new 64,000-square-foot facility in Waco is now poised to open, bringing expanded food distribution, job training and community services to a region where nearly 1 in 5 families faces food insecurity.
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The new facility is a major move for the food bank into the nine counties around Waco, where the food insecurity rate is about 19% — higher than other areas the food bank serves. It is designed to replace the need to truck meals from the food bank's Austin location and is expected to eventually hold an inventory of about 1.5 million pounds of food.
"This facility is an investment in our community's future," Central Texas Food Bank President and CEO Sari Vatske said.
Vatske gave an exclusive interview and tour of the new facility. Crews are already stocking shelves with staple items.
"So we have peanut butter. We have corn. We have oatmeal packages. These are items families are used to receiving," Vatske said.
Early food deliveries are being assembled and processed, starting with Waco-area families in what amounts to a beta test. The warehouse uses an automated inventory system to direct workers.
"So this is ABCD level. And so our warehouse inventory system drops down pallets and tells our warehouse associates what to pick from," Vatske said.
So, eat your heart out Home Depot?
"Yes! They've got nothing on us!" she laughed.
The scale of the operation reflects the scope of need across the region.
"It's hard for people to picture what it takes to serve about 610,000 food-insecure people throughout our 21 counties. We're hopeful that this facility plants a flag in the ground for them to see what it takes," Vatske said.
Beyond the warehouse, the facility will also include a large kitchen to prepare meals for the community and to teach food preparation and food service skills as potential job opportunities. The facility will also offer counseling and referrals, along with a store designed to feel like a supermarket rather than a soup kitchen.
Parts of the facility are still being finished, but Vatske said the beeping horns and whirring motors of the forklifts and the rumble of the roll-up doors are like soothing music.
"Every horn we hear, every pallet we see turning, every door that rolls up, we know that it's food on the way to families in need of assistance. It's the promise of what's next to come in the future," Vatske said.
The project is the result of research into current needs and long-term trends, and is expected to serve Central Texas for years and decades to come.
25 News is partnering with the Central Texas Food Bank as part of its "Feed the Need" food drive.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
