Join Northwest NewsChannel 8?s Great Food Drive, presented by Albertsons and supported by U.S. Bank and NW Natural, and help raise one-million pounds of food during March to help fight hunger in Oregon and Clark County, Wash.

If you see opportunities in March to support the Great Food Drive, contact Bob Morris, food resource manager at Oregon Food Bank, 503-282-0555, Ext. 261, or bmorris@oregonfoodbank.org.

Last year, food-industry donations played a key role in helping the Great Food Drive reach its goal. And KGW even featured some food-industry donations in its news broadcasts.

New record-keeping regulations under The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 require that any individual or business that sells food must establish and maintain detailed records of the immediate and previous source of the food and the recipient of the food for up to two years.

These regulations don't apply to food donated to food banks and other charitable organizations or to food sold directly to individuals for consumption. Your company can donate food to the Oregon Food Bank Network without record-keeping requirements.

Donating food to the Oregon Food Bank Network is a safe and efficient way for the food industry to make a difference in the lives of people who are hungry in our communities.

Oregon Food Bank has earned a reputation for food safety due to its stringent procedures for handling and transporting donated food.

To make a food donation, contact Bob Morris at 503-282-0555, Ext. 261 or bmorris@oregonfoodbank.org.

?I see business as an opportunity to serve,? says Kartar Khalsa, CEO of Golden Temple, a producer of nutritious cereals, teas and herbal supplements in Eugene. ?Supporting the community is part of our company?s philosophy. It?s our responsibility to help if we can.?

Over the last 12 years, Golden Temple has donated more than 500,000 pounds of cereal and other products to FOOD for Lane County, a regional food bank of the Oregon Food Bank Network in Eugene. And that?s just the beginning.

The food industry plays a critical role in helping to fight hunger by donating 63 percent of the food that Oregon Food Bank receives. We have been getting calls from the food industry asking what more they can do to help.

OFB works with thousands of companies in a variety of ways. Your corporation can:

• sponsor a fund-raising event
• start a workplace giving campaign
• volunteer to repack bulk food donations at OFB's Maybelle Clark Macdonald Volunteer Action Center
• donate funds to Oregon Food Bank
• run a food or fund drive or
• donate goods and services to OFB

To explore additional ways to get involved at OFB, contact Dwight Adkins, corporate relations manager, at 503-282-0555, Ext. 221, or dadkins@oregonfoodbank.org

Oregon Food Bank welcomes donations of safe, edible food or food ingredients. Click here for a list of OFB's immediate food needs.

Oregon Food Bank needs boxes, bags, totes and repackaging equipment. Click here for a list of OFB's goods and services needs.

Oregon Food Bank is an affilate of America's Second Harvest-The Nation's Food Bank Network.