Just in time for Easter, farmers will donate nine million eggs to food banks across the country. Locally owned Kreher's Farm Fresh Eggs dropped off its donation to Foodlink this week.

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"We farm to feed the world, to feed the country, to feed our community," said Jeannette Kreher. "We want to make sure we always give back to those less fortunate, especially during these times."

The donated eggs will go to food banks and pantries around Foodlink's 10-county region.

This is not Foodlink's typical donation. The agency is used to getting more non-perishable food in packages or cans. While those are very much needed, donations of fresh food like the eggs will go a long way to helping feed people healthy meals.

"Eggs are a great source of protein. They contain almost all the essential vitamins and minerals and they're easy to make. Protein is one of the items we don't see donated everyday," explained Foodlink COO Jeanette Batiste.

On any given day, 60,000 pounds of food will leave Foodlink's warehouse on Mt. Read Boulevard. That food will help feed the 200,000 people in our region who don't know where their next meal will come from.

Along with what's donated, Foodlink also takes in food supermarkets give up: pineapples too close to their sell-by date or boxes of crackers that were bent in shipping.

That's food Dorothy Cox shops for every week. She's with the YWCA, which helps women and children in need of shelter, food, and services. Cox said she wouldn't be able to feed all those families without the food she picks up at Foodlink.

Foodlink reports the need for emergency food has gone up by nearly 30 percent from last year. Many of those going hungry are children.

To find out how you can help, click here.