Charitable food system is stretched and unprepared for a surge in demand
A crisis of food insecurity has been growing quietly throughout West Michigan and the Upper Peninsula since 2021. Despite a growing economy and low unemployment, an astonishing number of people are struggling to put nutritious food on the table.
The increase is due in part to an 11.4% spike in food prices in 2022 that has continued to inch upward in the years since. Amid rising prices for food and other essentials, Covid-era assistance ended by 2022. The combination of higher cost and lower assistance has quietly driven demand for charitable food to record highs.
More people than ever in our 40-county service area have turned to local food distribution sites for help. To get a sense of the scope, families made 100,000 more trips to our mobile food pantries last year when compared to 2021. We can only guess at the increased visits to fixed pantries, where our ability to count the trips is severely limited.
In terms of pounds and meals, Feeding American West Michigan and its affiliates distributed a record 32.1 million pounds of food last year — a record that we are on track to surpass this year.
Volunteers and agency partners who run distribution sites have been watching the demand rise year after year, and they are concerned that there is no end in sight.
“We’ve seen the price of food skyrocket in the past five years, and that’s made what we’re doing even more important,” said Mike Voyt, Hunger Prevention and Children’s Services Director with True North Community Services in Fremont. “Food is one of those things that is malleable, that you tend to reduce or eliminate when you can’t afford to pay for things you can’t eliminate, like rent or a medical bill. Right now, folks of all walks of life find themselves in situations where they need a hand to be able to move forward. We see some large families that are struggling. We see a lot of seniors on fixed incomes coming through. We see a lot of families that are just starting out, too.”
Ken Estelle, Feeding America West Michigan President & CEO, who recently testified to a Michigan Senate committee, said that rural communities have been at the leading edge of the upward trend.
“In some of our most challenging rural communities, we bring food in for direct distributions. Our semi-trucks can hold enough food for around 600 households, and we often see more than 800 households show up,” he said.
The emotional weight of food insecurity is staggering. We frequently hear from the neighbors who visit our mobile pantries that they are overwhelmed by worry when they don’t have enough money for food.
“We’re not out here begging for help,” said Lynda, a neighbor who turned to a mobile food pantry in Luther for support. “We are out here because we can’t afford things with the economy. I work full time, normally, and now I’m not because of medical reasons, but with what your company or the person who donates gives, it’s helping me to feed and take care of my family. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you very much for what you do.”
In all 40 counties we serve, at least 1 in 7 people have to make choices between paying their bills and buying nutritious food to eat. We project this ratio to become 1 in 6 people beginning in 2026 because of cutbacks in federal food and healthcare assistance.
Food insecurity rates are highest for families with young children, older adults, veterans, and people with disabilities. Other factors include health problems that force early retirement and unemployment.