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In areas worst affected by food insecurity, “rescue” and redistribution of unsold items make a difference
In regions hit hardest by food insecurity, the “rescue” and redistribution of unsold goods is making a difference
JUDY STRINGER, CRAIN’S CONTENT STUDIO-CLEVELAND To see also : Anti-hunger advocates, families request universal school meals and food insecurity screening.
Dena Rhodes Adler (left), Hunger Network director of development, and Julie Johnson (right), Hunger Network CEO, fight food insecurity throughout the Cleveland area with the food rescue program, which diverts unsold produce from grocery stores to food pantries. , senior centers and other places in need.
Inflation has many of us rethinking meals, putting off major purchases and/or cutting back on summer travel plans. But for millions of Americans who are food insecure or on the verge of becoming food insecure, the rising cost of groceries, gas and other essentials is more than an inconvenience — it’s a danger to their health.
Diet-related diseases, including diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and obesity, have been linked to food insecurity, which is characterized by a lack of consistent access to enough food to live an active, healthy life, according to the anti-hunger organization Feeding. America. In children, food insecurity has been shown to slow childhood development, increase the risk of chronic diseases such as asthma and anemia and lead to behavioral problems such as hyperactivity, anxiety and aggression.
“And among low-income seniors who already suffer from one or more chronic conditions, rising prices often force them to decide between paying bills and buying food or buying medicine,” explained Julie Johnson, CEO of Hunger Network, Cuyahoga County’s largest emergency food provider.
Further medical complications arise when skipping doses, taking less medication or even eating less is part of the tradeoff.
As rising inflation has led to the elimination of benefit programs in the COVID-19 era, Johnson said his organization is “busier than ever.”
“And, yes, we expect more people to need access to food in the coming months.”
The Hunger Network provided more than 5.8 million meals to families and individuals by 2021, primarily through 76 neighborhood-based food pantries. In June, the nonprofit celebrated the grand opening of the MidTown hunger center, which also serves as its new headquarters.
“We’re right now in Ward 7 and on the border of Ward 5, and both of those wards see the highest poverty rates and the highest food insecurity rates in the city of Cleveland,” Johnson said. “So, that’s why we’re strategically located there.”
People can come and shop the new “MidTown Market” or use an ordering service like Instacart for free, according to Dena Rhodes Adler, director of development for the Hunger Network. In either case, the emphasis is on providing as much fresh produce, grains and meat as possible while reducing pantry users’ reliance on processed foods.
“We have also implemented what we call the SWAP [Supporting Wellness in Pantries] system in MidTown,” she said.
SWAP is a food nutrition ranking system that operates on the same premise as a traffic signal. Items that are higher in saturated fat, sodium and sugar are marked in red for “rare choice”. Items marked yellow, to “choose sometimes,” including non-cereal-grain pasta, 100% fruit juices and whole milk, which have both good and bad qualities. Green-marked items, like fresh products, whole-grain products and unsweetened milks, are foods to “often choose” in the system.
The easy-to-understand ranking is intended to promote healthy choices in a food pantry setting, but it only works well if those green items – which have historically been hard for food pantries to obtain and stock – are readily available. That’s where the Hunger Network’s food rescue program comes in.
Rhodes Adler said the Hunger Network recovers uneaten or unpurchased food from 139 donor sites in the Greater Cleveland area, including large grocery chains such as Giant Eagle and Whole Foods. The rescued food — which otherwise would have been thrown away — is then distributed to food pantries in addition to 100 other sites such as head start programs, senior centers and transitional housing complexes.
“While our pantry system is only in Cuyahoga County, the food rescue program branches out beyond Lake County, Geauga County, Lorain County and a little tip Summit County,” she said. “And a lot of it is done by individual volunteers who sign up for the Hunger Network Rescue Hero app.”
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More than 3.4 million pounds of food have been saved from landfills since the food rescue app launched in 2018, according to Rhodes Adler. Among the app’s more than 800 users, 300-400 are actively rescuing food on a daily or weekly basis, he said.
Johnson added that stocking up on fresh produce and prepared foods is important in areas like MidTown, where access to groceries has been limited in the past. However, even in communities with plenty of supermarkets, she said, fresh items often outnumber more expensive options, forcing many food-insecure people to rely on processed and less nutritious foods.
“While we’re bringing these healthier items into our pantries and other partner sites, we’re also trying to provide recipes and meal ideas to help clients incorporate things like seasonal produce into their diets and family meals,” she says.
For more information about the Hunger Network or to become a food rescue hero, visit hungernetwork.org.
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