Indiana agriculture department awards $300K to 11 food banks

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Eleven Indiana food banks are sharing in $300,000 in state funding that will help them keep their shelves stocked with food.

The funding from the State Department of Agriculture was announced Monday by Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, who says food banks "are doing truly extraordinary things" by providing food assistance and services to those in need.

Feeding Indiana's Hungry is Indiana's food bank association. The group says that one in seven Indiana residents suffer from hunger and that more than 280,000 Indiana children don't know where their next meal is coming from.

Executive Director Emily Weikert Bryant says the funding will help the 11 food banks purchase milk, produce and various high-demand foods.

The funding was authorized last year by the Indiana Legislature as part of the state's biennial budget.