greater Chicago Food Depository is a nonstop operation serving hundreds of organizations across Chicago with food insecurity on the rise, the food bank has opened a new facility focused on preparing hot meals.

Are Joanna Hernandez gets an inside look at their operations.

>> At the food Bank on the southwest side, the operation is all about teamwork.

From cutting vegetables to fruit.

To preparing impacting food trays to more than 800 food pantries, soup kitchens and shelters throughout Chicago.

>> We have pantries in every community.

I mean, that is the reality.

where to go away from uptown?

All the way to West Pullman.

Yeah.

Sometimes the repack team.

We'll tell them.

You know, you just read hacked 17,000 pounds of food today is likely to go to this community.

Are that community?

>> This year, the organization completed the expansion of its 38,000 Square Foot, Commercial kitchen known as the Project Chief Operating Officer Jill Dream on says it's a game changer for their mission to end hunger.

>> We might not have a kitchen.

You might have the capability to cook.

You might not have the in urging cookie.

Not that might not be well enough to cook.

And so we needed to build this facility.

>> To produce meals with more space for food production on says the goal of this new facility is to make and distribute 10,000 ready to eat meals daily.

>> We had to make food that was healthy and healthy needed to be defined by something that we can go back to and say it's not just our idea.

Healthy, we're committing to the dash diet.

So it's rich in fruits and vegetables.

It's rich in whole grains is rich in lean protein.

Low in dairy fat and low in sodium.

But because they make all the marinade, we can control the tape.

>> We'll see what happens.

But still 12 50's a lot executive chef Michael Goss is in charge of overseeing daily food operations at any given time.

We may have 18 to 20 different recipes in the works.

Chef gas transition from fine dining to collaborating with dietitians at the food bank to cook up meals from scratch.

Anything from chicken.

Fish soup in your occasional hot off meals.

>> The overall goal is to keep people.

We want them to eat the food that's prepared.

So it needs to be, you know, tasty and and really high quality.

And there's no reason that nutritious or or healthful foods, can't be those things.

>> I'll break one more rule here and take you guys into pack.

>> This is where's the meals to give a symbol?

>> Meals prepared here are distribute to 34 community partners throughout Chicago and Cook County, including 2 state run facilities for asylum seekers for months as their focus not providing groceries but meals cater to older adults who have disabilities or chronic health conditions.

So we have about 340 older adults.

>> That will get a mix box of meals.

So they'll get 5 to 7 meals, different entrees and a hot meal on that delivery.

And we delivered directly to their home.

>> The facility also grows its own herbs like growing parsley, basil and oregano using hydroponics our final stop of the tour is a room full of volunteers packing boxes to send out to local pantries >> this group of generous volunteers were giving us what is most precious, which is time army packing those potatoes into smaller bags and then they'll put them into boxes.

They will then go into inventory.

>> With one in 5 households experiencing food insecurity on says the number of people in need continues to grow since the pandemic.

>> While this is definitely the season of giving what we want to remind people is that this is a need that.

Those who are in need face every day, not just Thanksgiving and Christmas.

>> For Chicago tonight, I'm Joanna Hernandez.

And if you know someone facing food