Regional Industry & News

FARGO — All four walls are up at the site of Great Plains Food Bank's future statewide distribution center, which leadership says should open by fall 2027.

The new space, located at 3315 Westrac Drive in Fargo, will be 57% larger than the existing distribution center.

"The need is growing," Great Plains Food Bank CEO Ann Prifrel said. "Our current facility is outdated, inefficient and is not designed to meet this growing need for food."

Also located in Fargo, the current distribution center was previously a pipe-fitting manufacturing building. By moving to the new location, Prifrel feels the food bank will not only be able to distribute more food more efficiently, but will also leave room to grow for decades to come.

The building will be 70,500 square feet. Construction began in May and is expected to be finished by next summer. A grand opening is planned for next fall.

The $30.5 million project is 75% funded, Prifrel said. The food bank saved some money over the years through investment, received $5 million from the state of North Dakota and collected the remainder through donations.

"We still need funding to get us across the finish line," Prifrel said.

Donations can be made online at give.greatplainsfoodbank.org. Prifrel is open to meeting with anyone interested in contributing to the project.

"Thank you for those who have invested in this project, and who have invested in the very important work that the Great Plains Food Bank has done for the past 44 years," she said. "This building represents the next 44."

Great Plains Food Bank is the main source of food for food pantries throughout North Dakota and Clay County, Minnesota. The food bank distributes food to more than 200 pantry partners including schools, health clinics and churches.

During the last fiscal year, the food bank recorded a total of 1.2 million visits to area food pantries and a record number of more than 186,000 unique individuals. Included in that number is a 22% increase in children seeking access to food.

"The need continues to grow," Prifrel said. "These numbers represent one in four individuals (who) struggle with food insecurity — and of that one in four, one in three are children."

Great Plains secured food bank experts who helped design a space that would allow food to be moved more efficiently, with more dock doors to receive and send out supplies, as well as additional cooler and freezer capacity to source more food from local farmers. There will also be a community room with space for up to 100 people.

The new building is a sign of hope for neighbors experiencing hunger and struggling to make ends meet, Prifrel said.

"It really is a beacon for the community," she said.

Once it opens, Prifrel welcomes anyone who would like to volunteer their time to the food bank.

"We invite businesses, community groups, individuals — anyone who'd like to be part of the solution (to) ending hunger," she said. "It's truly the community's building."