Food Banks Face Record Shortfall of Contributions

The Southland’s food banks are facing severe shortages that could leave some people without Thanksgiving dinner.

Marcella Barba, development coordinator at Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County, said: “There is less food to give on Thanksgiving and less food to give period.”

She and others at Los Angeles and Orange County food banks said food supplies have been slipping over the last decade, and have now reached an all-time low.

The prime reason for the shortage is the increased efficiency of supermarkets and industry mergers that mean fewer food sources. Food banks traditionally receive products such as damaged cans, food with expired labels or wrong labels. But better technology means less damaged goods, and consequently, fewer donations to the food banks, officials said.

Furthermore, some damaged goods are turning up in dollar-mart stores for sale, instead of in food banks, they said.

“This year, several grocery stores just stopped giving for a while. Until we hear otherwise, they’ve just stopped,” said Barba. An official with the Food Marketing Institute supermarket association in Washington, D.C., said he could not immediately comment.

Delays by the federal Food and Drug Administration in distributing surplus cheese and other bulk goods have added to the problem, food bank officials said.

Barba of Second Harvest said the agency’s warehouse has supplies one-third lower than its normal level, which would mean 700,000 fewer donated meals for the poor. Last year there were 1 million pounds of food in the warehouse near Thanksgiving, but this year there are 650,000 pounds. Second Harvest provides food to 350 local charities.

“This is a trend we have known about for a while. But recently, it’s become more extreme. We have been looking at alternatives, including food from restaurants and from local farms,” Barba said.

Los Angeles Regional Food Bank spokesman Darren Hoffman agreed, saying warehouse levels are half of what they were last year.

Donations are down, and the federal government glitch meant less food came to the agency, he said. The warehouse had 2.6 million pounds of food last year but has 1.3 million pounds this year.

“The problem is worse than I thought,” he said. “We can make up some with food drives this month, but it will not close the gap. We’re hurting.” Hoffman said, for his agency, the shortage might not affect the number of holiday meals, but would affect reserves that are kept for leaner months and for emergencies.

Mark Lowry, director of the Community Development Council’s Orange County Food Bank, said the agency’s inventory has been sharply reduced. Last year, the warehouse had 120,000 pounds of food, but this year it has just 80,000 pounds.

Lowry said although efficiency in the supermarket industry has cut supply, the area’s economy and changes in welfare rules mean people have less money for food.

“We have a population that is off assistance, but they are making $6 an hour in an area with very high rents,” said Lowry.

Second Harvest estimates that 400,000 people in Orange County are at risk of going hungry during any given month.

Lowry said many organizations tap the food banks during the holidays, which brings the warehouse inventory to an annual low. To keep supplies up throughout the year, he said he and other food bank officials try to emphasize that “people who are hungry at the holidays are hungry in July and August too.”

Barba said her organization has turned away volunteers this month because there is no food for them to distribute. On Monday, the organization did not have any turkeys and was anxiously awaiting a shipment that was expected, “to fly,” Barba said.

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For information:

* The Second Harvest Food Bank, (714) 771-1343

* Orange County Food Bank, (714) 897-6670