"BOSTON November is peak season for food banks and pantries in a normal year. But this year, since SNAP food assistance has lapsed for 42 million Americans, the pressure on pantries is next-level. "Welcome to the madness," says Operations Manager Elaina Schreckenberger, at the ABCD Allston/Brighton Neighborhood Opportunity Center Food Pantry, where staff are scrambling to keep up with the steady flow of people at the front door."
""It's painful when someone comes in and we have to say, 'I just don't have anything for you today,' " says the pantry's client advocate, Juliet Smith. "We've never had to do that before. Never." Food banks had already taken a hit earlier this year when the U.S. Department of Agriculture halted some $500 million in food deliveries. Pantries took another hit when the federal government shut down last month and many unpaid federal workers added to the demand for assistance."
November is normally peak season for food banks and pantries. The lapse in SNAP food assistance for 42 million Americans has sharply increased demand at pantries. Staff report steady long lines, chaos during Thanksgiving distributions, and the need to hand out frozen turkeys while many clients remain at risk. Families with multiple children and people who cannot work because of disabilities report anxiety about upcoming meals. Some pantries are placing clients on two-week waits and sometimes must send people away empty-handed. Earlier USDA cuts to food deliveries and a recent federal government shutdown further strained supplies and staffing, intensifying the crisis.
Read at www.npr.org
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