The ebb and flow of what agriculture can produce, versus what grocery and restaurant buyers are able to buy, inevitably means some food goes to waste in even healthy economic times. But the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic’s chilling effect on restaurant traffic means more fresh produce is in danger of being left unused.

Thanks to one huge contribution from an anonymous farmer, though, that won’t happen to a bumper crop of locally-raised sweet potatoes. On Friday, the staff at Cullman Caring for Kids Food Bank ended up on the receiving end of a whopping 8,400-pound donation of the orange tubers.

At a time when the food bank already is facing persistent food shortages amid higher-than-normal demand from local families, that’s a big deal, says Nancy Bryant, the nonprofit’s assistant director.

“This is vital,” Bryant said Friday, as staff got busy boxing up generously family-sized packages of the produce at the agency’s Cullman office. “We’ve really been needing produce. Each family gets a bag of meat, a bag of vegetables, bread if we have it, and even a pastry for dessert, if we have any. It’s a pretty balanced meal.”

Thanks to the coordinating efforts of the Society of St. Andrew, a faith-based hunger nonprofit that operates in Alabama and eight other states, farmers looking for a way to share their excess product need look no further than the nearest phone. As with Friday’s donation, a call to the organization will get workers out to your farm to pick up the goods and take them where they need to go — and you even get a tax write-off.

“We will even go out into the fields and pick it ourselves,” said Adrienne Standridge, program coordinator for the Society’s Alabama office. “Our whole mission is to work with farmers to get the excess from their fields and into the hands of the hungry. Think of us as a ‘middle’ agent that picks up from farmers and delivers to the needy. That lets the farmers stay focused on just doing their jobs, while we come and do all the work to facilitate the actual donation.”

Standridge, who coordinates donations all across the state throughout the year, says there’s something about the Cullman area’s tight-knit community spirit that sets it apart. “Cullman kind of has that feeling to me of like a big family,” she said. “Everybody knows everybody, and even if they don’t, they care when they hear about people in their community in need. It’s always a joy when I get to work in Cullman. It really is one of my favorite places to work.”

Thanks to the nonprofit’s timely efforts, as well as the anonymous farmer’s enormous gift, local families who receive meal materials from the food bank won’t be lacking for beta carotine anytime soon. “We are dividing the boxes up twice, so that each family is getting half a box,” said Bryant, noting that a full box contains 40 pounds (yes, 40 pounds) of sweet potatoes. “Larger families with six or more, they get a whole box.”

It’s a good thing sweet potatoes are so versatile. For more information on the Society of St. Andrew, including a way for farmers with excess produce — “no matter how small or big,” as Standridge says — to get in touch, contact Standridge at 205-245-3214, and visit the nonprofit’s website at endhunger.org.

Amanda Shavers-Davis contributed to this report.

Contact Adrienne Standridge at the Society of St. Andrew at 205-245-3214, and visit the nonprofit’s website at endhunger.org.

Cullman Caring for Kids Food Bank is located at 402 Arnold St NE Suite W-1.

Contact them at 256-739-1111 or cullmancaringforkids@msn.com

For more information on the food bank, find them online at cullmancaringforkids.com