Bay Area food banks fall short millions of dollars in fundraising goals

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Several Bay Area food banks are short by millions of dollars reaching their fundraising goal by the end of the year.

Michael Altfest, director of communication & marketing at Alameda County Community Food Bank, says two-thirds of the food bank's annual budget is raised during the months of November and December.

"This year, the gap that we have to makeup during December is substantially higher," Altfest said.

The Alameda County Community Food Bank is $2.5 million short of its year-end goal to help provide food for nearly 116,000 people each month.

RELATED: ABC7 partners with Bay Area food banks for annual food drive

Second Harvest Community Food Bank serves more than a quarter of a million people each month in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. It's $11 million short.

A spokesperson for Second Harvest said they have a goal of raising $19 million and found out they're $11 million short. She said this year they're serving more people, so the need is more.

The San Francisco-Marin Food Bank feeds 141,000 people each week and needs $4.2 million to meet its fundraising goal by the end of 2019.

Donations go toward programs and increased food distribution throughout the year.

"Food banks are community based organizations, we're not government funded," Alfest said. "We really depend on community support so we're just hoping that the community can step up and make sure that our neighbors have the nourishment that they need."

Take a look at all of ABC7's Building a Better Bay Area stories and videos.