Food insecurity continues upward trend in Chenango County
NORWICH – Roots and Wings of Chenango County is adjusting to a harsh increase in demand at its food pantry, mirroring a trend of food insecurity that’s being seen nationwide.
According to Roots and Wings, the number of homes served by its food pantry has increased approximately 36 percent since 2010. The organization, acting under direction of Catholic Charities to provide clothing, food and household goods for individuals and families in need, saw a record 626 households served by its food pantry during the month of January this year.
Already, Roots and Wings has offered meals for more than 4,445 households in 2014, coming dangerously close to exceeding its supply. Coordinators recently made a tough decision to downsize its five-day-per-week packaged meal offerings to three-day packages in order to meet the growing demand.
“The cost of food has gone up and our program really can't keep up with it,” said Melinda Mandeville, Director of Roots and Wings. “Things really aren’t slowing down.”
Chenango County isn’t alone in the devastating trend of food insecurity. The United States Department of Agriculture this month released a report of food insecurity in the U.S. which notes a sharp increase of about 4 percent in food insecurity between 2007 and 2009. Since then, the percentage of U.S. households that are food insecure has nearly leveled off, coming in at 14.9 percent in 2011; 14.5 percent in 2012; and 14.3 percent in 2013.
“Their findings are a little surprising because we aren’t seeing our numbers flatten,” Mandeville said, citing an increase of about 820 households served by the Roots and Wings food pantry from 2012 to 2013. The organization provided meals to 6,166 households last year, equating to more than 19,800 individuals and 301,590 meals. “We are only seeing our numbers continue to increase,” she added.
“I've been here eight years and the numbers of families served has more than doubled,” said Kathy Darrah, Roots and Wings food pantry coordinator. “For some people, it may be just an emergency situation and we only see them once. But we are seeing a lot of families who need to return more often. Obviously, meeting the needs of all those families is getting tougher all the time.”
Adding to the hardships faced by Roots and Wings, the agency lost approximately $10,000 in assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program in 2012. FEMA cut program funding to the county due to a decline of unemployment in Chenango County and a local poverty rate that’s now lower than the Emergency Food and Shelter Program poverty threshold.
“It’s been two years, so we are adjusting to that loss,” said Mandeville, also mentioning that the decision to transition from five-day meal packages to three days has been a help in serving more households. Additional help comes from donations of individuals and companies in the area. “Fortunately, the busier we get and the more families that we feed, the community has always pulled through to help out,” she said.
“I think people are much more aware of the problem than they used to be,” added Darrah. “The community is always so helpful. We couldn’t possibly survive without them.”
According to Roots and Wings, the number of homes served by its food pantry has increased approximately 36 percent since 2010. The organization, acting under direction of Catholic Charities to provide clothing, food and household goods for individuals and families in need, saw a record 626 households served by its food pantry during the month of January this year.
Already, Roots and Wings has offered meals for more than 4,445 households in 2014, coming dangerously close to exceeding its supply. Coordinators recently made a tough decision to downsize its five-day-per-week packaged meal offerings to three-day packages in order to meet the growing demand.
“The cost of food has gone up and our program really can't keep up with it,” said Melinda Mandeville, Director of Roots and Wings. “Things really aren’t slowing down.”
Chenango County isn’t alone in the devastating trend of food insecurity. The United States Department of Agriculture this month released a report of food insecurity in the U.S. which notes a sharp increase of about 4 percent in food insecurity between 2007 and 2009. Since then, the percentage of U.S. households that are food insecure has nearly leveled off, coming in at 14.9 percent in 2011; 14.5 percent in 2012; and 14.3 percent in 2013.
“Their findings are a little surprising because we aren’t seeing our numbers flatten,” Mandeville said, citing an increase of about 820 households served by the Roots and Wings food pantry from 2012 to 2013. The organization provided meals to 6,166 households last year, equating to more than 19,800 individuals and 301,590 meals. “We are only seeing our numbers continue to increase,” she added.
“I've been here eight years and the numbers of families served has more than doubled,” said Kathy Darrah, Roots and Wings food pantry coordinator. “For some people, it may be just an emergency situation and we only see them once. But we are seeing a lot of families who need to return more often. Obviously, meeting the needs of all those families is getting tougher all the time.”
Adding to the hardships faced by Roots and Wings, the agency lost approximately $10,000 in assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program in 2012. FEMA cut program funding to the county due to a decline of unemployment in Chenango County and a local poverty rate that’s now lower than the Emergency Food and Shelter Program poverty threshold.
“It’s been two years, so we are adjusting to that loss,” said Mandeville, also mentioning that the decision to transition from five-day meal packages to three days has been a help in serving more households. Additional help comes from donations of individuals and companies in the area. “Fortunately, the busier we get and the more families that we feed, the community has always pulled through to help out,” she said.
“I think people are much more aware of the problem than they used to be,” added Darrah. “The community is always so helpful. We couldn’t possibly survive without them.”
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