Sharing the Bounty: Fighting Hunger in Our Community

Original articles from Winter 2011:
Second Harvest by Maggie Messitt
Empty Bowls and Full Hearts by Susan Gloss
Chef in the Classroom by Shannon Henry Kleiber

Then

The theme of this issue was, and still is, a topic dear to our hearts: neighbors feeding neighbors. There are so many examples of this kindness and compassion in our region. Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens grow literally tons of food to distribute to local pantries. Huge food bank warehouses like Second Harvest of Southern Wisconsin distribute food across our region. Benefit events like Empty Bowls bring awareness and empathy to the issue of local food insecurity and contribute money that’s used right in the community. Looking back, this work makes us so proud of our Southern Wisconsin neighbors.

Now

When we published this issue in 2011—just after the nation emerged from the 2008 recession—food insecure households had hit a record high. Food insecurity wouldn’t return to pre-recession levels until 2018—it took a decade to recover from a recession that lasted only a year and a half.

Now, as the country teeters on the brink of another recession, efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic have put millions of Americans at risk of moving into—or deeper into—food insecurity yet again. Feeding America, a network that links the country’s thousands of food pantries, food banks, and meal programs, expects food insecurity in southwestern Wisconsin to increase by approximately 61 percent due to the pandemic. Between March and May, an estimated 63,000 more people in Southern Wisconsin became food insecure, many of whom were turning to the emergency food system for the first time in their lives.

School and childcare closures left around 6 million children across the country without the significant nutrition provided by free and reduced-cost school meal programs. But on a positive note, many schools across the state continued serving bagged lunches to students in need.

We especially want to recognize the nonprofits that, without hesitation, stepped into the chaos to provide food and care to their neighbors. When shelves were bare of big-name flour, the Artisan Grain Collaborative launched a new initiative, Neighbor Loaves, to get bread baked with local grain into the hands of hungry people. Their participating bakeries churned out 10,000 loaves in just two months.

Roots4Change, a cooperative of Latina and indigenous community health workers, in partnership with REAP Food Group, have been delivering weekly “resilience boxes” to around 200 families through their Farms to Families initiative. The boxes are filled with fresh, locally grown produce, protein and grains, including bread from the Neighbor Loaves program.

“This landscape is giving Roots4Change and REAP’s partnership an opportunity to re-appropriate the meaning of sustainable local food systems and shape it to a more equitable system based on mutual solidarity: farmers need to make a living and people deserve to eat wholesome food,” says Helen Sarakinos, executive director of REAP.

Food banks and pantries continue to be a hub during hard times, thanks to the people of Wisconsin who generously support them. Kris Tazelaar, director of marketing and communications for Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin, says the food bank and its network are here for the long-haul. “We are built to handle this kind of crisis as long as we continue to receive the kind of support we’ve gotten since the pandemic began. This level of support is truly inspiring, and it’s what makes the long hours worth it.”

Future

As we head into summer, the season of sweat and dirt and plenty, we hope Edible Madison readers will find ways to support a relief organization that may be struggling to fill its schedule or shelves. Although the current situation makes it difficult to gather or volunteer in our usual ways, we must continue to share the bounty and support our neighbors generously and often.

Volunteering at a food pantry garden or growing your own and donating it can be wonderful ways to support those in need while maintaining social distancing. Purchase a Neighbor Loaf through a participating bakery (graincollaborative.com/neighbor-loaves). Or contribute money if you’re able. Food banks can purchase food at less than retail prices, turning the $1 you would’ve spent on one can of green beans into $10 worth of food (secondharvestmadison.org/donate). Nonprofit organizations like REAP Food Group and so many others can turn your dollars into meaningful action.

“COVID-19 has exposed the cracks of our food systems in a painful way that I hope we can use as an opportunity for change,” says Sarakinos. “Groups like REAP have long spoken about the value of a resilient local food system for a strong community and economy. Maybe this is the time we can reinvest in our farmers and lands and soils and residents in a tangible and impactful way—to re-establish the backbone of a local food system.” We hope so.