It’s a sad irony that the people who once fed us may now be going hungry. Most restaurant workers were laid off when the pandemic hit, but a new service has popped up to help.
Like so many businesses, the largest supplier of food to restaurants and cafeterias has been humbled by the COVID virus.
“Overnight we were down about 50% in business.”
Knowing many in their industry were now without income, Jason Haddock and other Sysco executives decided to give food away.
“We were left with a ton of perishable inventory. And our goal was to not have to throw anything in the dumpster,” Haddock says.
The company partnered with restaurants in Fredericksburg, Charlottesville, Harrisonburg and Richmond to open pop-up food pantries for jobless workers.
“All we’re doing is asking them to provide a pay stub for a restaurant where they were employed in the last 60 days, whether you’ve been the dishwasher or you work in a nursing home as a tray server," Haddock explains. "If you have any ties to the restaurant community we’ve been able to supply you with a bag or two of food.”
In Charlottesville, the pantry proved so popular that a hundred people were sent away when food ran out, but Haddock quickly scheduled two more days when they were able to return and get groceries. This week, he says, pantries will open in Lynchburg and Roanoke.
