Community refrigerators help fight hunger in Los Angeles

In neighborhoods across Los Angeles, community refrigerators are starting to appear, filled with food that is free for anyone who needs it, any time of day.

Since the LA Community Fridges project launched around two weeks ago, six refrigerators have been set up across the city, with another in nearby Long Beach. Refrigerators are installed at businesses, which supply the electricity, and filled with food donated by local residents, restaurants, and food delivery services. Volunteers make sure the refrigerators stay clean and stocked with a variety of items, like cheese, eggs, tortillas, and assorted vegetables.

Joshua Mock is the owner of Little Amsterdam Coffee, and sponsors a refrigerator. "The best thing you can do is lend a hand," he told NBC Los Angeles, adding, "People need food. There's people that want to give, and I mean why not? Why not help?"

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Paloma Vergara of Reach for the Top, the organization coordinating the effort, said LA Community Fridges is modeled after a similar program in New York, and helps people in all stages of life. "Food insecurity is a broad spectrum," she told NBC Los Angeles. "It can be anybody."