PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Food banks across the country are simultaneously dealing with massive federal funding cuts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and rising demand for assistance from their communities due to high food prices for consumers.
Earlier this month, USDA nixed two pandemic-era programs — Local Food for Schools and Local Food Purchase Assistance — that provided more than $1 billion in funding for schools and food banks to buy from local farmers and ranchers.
USDA said the programs are a legacy of the pandemic and no longer supported the agency’s priorities.
“The COVID era is over — USDA’s approach to nutrition programs will reflect that reality moving forward,” a USDA spokesperson said in a statement.
The Share Food Program, for example, is at risk of losing its funding. The Philly-based food bank serves hundreds of thousands of people in the five-county region through a network of food pantries and about 800 schools.
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“We are getting word from the USDA that we stand to lose up to about $8 million of total food and funding for the next fiscal year,” said Executive Director George Matysik. “That could mean up to about a 20% to 25% cut in the total amount of food that we’ll be able to provide.”
At the same time, more people are asking for assistance in the face of rising food costs.
“Right now, we are looking at a warehouse that is as empty as it’s been in probably a decade, and more community members are coming to us than in any time in recent memory,” Matysik added. “The cost of food has been going up so much over the course of the year, so it’s really putting us in a really challenging position.”
While Share has received help from the state, city and donors, Matysik said it’s difficult to make up what they’re losing from the federal government.
“The community has stepped up in major ways to help support us through this challenge, but this is a huge cut for us at the federal level,” he explained. “About 60% of our total food and funding comes from federal sources.”
“To watch everything that you’re trying to do to make sure people don’t go to sleep hungry keep toppling down in such a mean and cruel way is heartbreaking — on top of incredibly motivating,” echoed Jess Bautista, Share chief communications officer.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.