MONTGOMERY COUNTY — A local food bank has seen an increase in the usage of hunger relief programs this year.
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The Foodbank Inc., saw many families using their services for the first time this year, according to a spokesperson from the organization.
Drive-thrus, mobile pantries, and mass food distributions are just some of what the Foodbank Inc. does to help residents of Miami Valley.
In 2023, the foodbank hosted eight mass food distributions in partnership with CareSource, the spokesperson said.
7,230 households were given resources, and 3,473 of those households were accessing the foodbank’s hunger relief network for the first time.
This is a 17% increase from May 2022, when 6,185 households were served through the mass food distribution programs.
Every week, the foodbank hosts onsite drive-thrus that have seen a 28% increase over the last year, the spokesperson said.
3,501 households received food from January to November in 2022 compared to the 4,644 households that received food in the same timeframe in 2023.
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The USDA’s Household Food Security 2022 Report aligns with the data collected by the Foodbank Inc., the spokesperson said.
The USDA reported hunger increasing nationally since the pandemic.
17 million households were identified as food insecure in 2022, compared to the 13.5 million households in 2021, and 13.8 million households in 2020, according to the USDA report.
“We are continuing to see our food lines getting longer. Even though we have been able to meet this demand so far, we need to have a conversation about the conditions causing this to happen and what can be done if the need keeps rising. It is more important now than ever that we continue to get government support through programs like TEFAP and SNAP,” CEO of The Foodbank, Inc. Michelle L. Riley said.