September is Hunger Action Month
BRAWLEY, Calif. (KYMA) – Started in September of 2007, Hunger Action Month aims to raise awareness about food insecurity, and to remind people to take action by donating to local food banks or volunteering.
Volunteers from the Imperial Valley Food Bank were at the Cattle Call Arena in Brawley Thursday, September 24, for a community food distribution.
“Hunger Action Month is just a rallying cry to help the public understand that this problem still exists in this country in a growing demanding way due to some cuts in programs including SNAP, where people are falling off of assistance and really needing more help getting through the month,” Sara Griffen, Imperial Valley Food Bank Director, told News 11.
Assemblyman Jeff Gonzalez was on hand with his team volunteering and handing out information on state resources for assistance.
“Right now, Imperial Valley Food Bank in this line is gonna be able to feed 500 families for 1 week, but that’s only 1 week out of the year. One thing that the community can do is they can get involved at the Imperial Valley Food Bank by donating either food or resources, money, so that way they can buy protein. That’s one of the things that the food bank is missing is protein to help feed people,” the assemblyman said.
Federal data shows that general grocery inflation over the last year is hovering around 3% due to tariffs and higher fuel costs.
Specific items like tomatoes have risen 40% due to tariffs on Mexico, and the cost of beef has risen roughly 18% due to tighter cattle supply.
“Definitely we are seeing an increase with the cuts to SNAP benefits on the federal level,” Cari Augusta, Distribution Manager at the Imperial Valley Food Bank, explained.
“It has really come down to our level, and we don’t have as many big corporate donors as a lot of other food banks have, so we have to rely on our local donors, search for grants to help supplement what we’re receiving, and also we’re receiving less food in the warehouse from the USDA,” she said.
In addition to over 30 food distribution sites, the food bank also participates in the weekend backpack program for students, sending home meals for children over the weekend.
“The best way to help us is with monetary donations because we do buy all our food in bulk. You can kind of see here, some of this is pre-packed, but everything comes on a pallet. Food drives are not an effective way to feed 30,000 people. We really need to have everything palletized and purchase wholesale so that we’re able to make that dollar stretch further,” Griffen stated.
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