(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – Food pantries in the Chicago area are experiencing more demand than ever, but observers and people who help distribute supplies agree there isn’t one particular driver – or solution.
Reasons for the recent surge in need include the post-pandemic inflation that has increased the price of food; the narrowing of federal food-assistance benefits; and, to some degree, the influx of migrants and new arrivals from the U.S. Southern border.
“It’s a whole network of causes,” says Chicago Tribune reporter Kate Armanini, who has written about the challenge. “There’s just so many factors at play here, and all of them together are just driving this really unprecedented demand on these organizations.”
On the front lines is Kellie O’Connell, CEO of Nourishing Hope, formerly the Lakeview Pantry, which provides groceries and supportive services to people in need. She says her organization has seen demand grow by more than 30 percent compared to the previous year, which is comparable to other pantry operations.
“Because of the uptick in clients,” O’Connell says, “we’ve had to put some limits on how many people can come to us on a specific day, primarily so that we can make sure that families that are coming in still have access to the food that they expect and that they need when they come to us. So, that’s one of the ways we’re looking at making sure we spread out.”
The number of first-time clients at Nourishing Hope grew by 21,000 last year, she says, and for some people just walking through the door can be especially tough.
“When you have to make choices between paying rent or keeping your lights on and buying food for yourself or your family, that can really impact you in a deeply emotional way,” she says. “Food is such a basic human necessity and such a basic human right that when you don’t have access to it, it can be really hard.”
Armanini and O’Connell are guests on this week’s Looped In: Chicago podcast, which looks at the ways food pantries are coping.
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