BEND, OR -- A new bill passed by Congress offers tax incentives for food producers who donate to food banks. On Friday, Oregon Senator Ron Wyden visited The Giving Plate in Bend, a non-profit that provides food to local needy families.
He tells KBND News, prior to the new bill, there were limited incentives for farmers to donate food. “One, you get and expanded credit. Two, it is permanent. And three, it will be something that will be useful to you all year round.” Instead of one-time food donations at the end of the year, businesses and farmers can donate any time of the year.
Carly Sanders, Food Program Manager at NeighborImpact, says “We always are looking for ways to receive more perishable nutritious foods, and if that encourages our local farmers and ranchers to do so, then that’s just more inventory that we can then give to your clientele.”
The food donation provision included in the "Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes" Act permanently extends the enhanced deduction for charitable contributions of food inventory for non-corporate business taxpayers.
