Need swells; pandemic pressures food pantries

Hunger pangs in the county are increasing as food prices skyrocket, further straining residents already financially burdened by the pandemic. “The need is greater than ever to get food into the homes of people who need it,” said Emily Ruth, who is the pantry manager for the Rural Organizing Project in Cottage Grove. “So many people have lost work, lost wages, suffered illness and loss with the pandemic … It’s created a double-bind where people have less money than they’ve had with raising food prices.”

Volunteers at The Rural Organizing Project ready for the rush on Tuesday, Feb 1 at its pantry at 632 E. Main St. in Cottage Grove. ROP started its food pantry in 2019, and since then, the demand has only increased, according to Emily Roth, pantry manager. The food pantry is operative Tuesdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m. DANA MERRYDAY/ THE CHRONICLE

Hunger pangs in the county are increasing as food prices skyrocket, further straining residents already financially burdened by the pandemic.

“The need is greater than ever to get food into the homes of people who need it,” said Emily Ruth, who is the pantry manager for the Rural Organizing Project in Cottage Grove. “So many people have lost work, lost wages, suffered illness and loss with the pandemic … It’s created a double-bind where people have less money than they’ve had with raising food prices.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Jan. 12 the price of at-home food increased 6.5% in 2021. This is a steep jump, especially considering the average annual increase was only 1.5% in the past 10 years.

The price increase for food puts another stress on residents already financially strained from the economic strife from the pandemic — employment in Lane County is still 3 percentage points lower than pre-pandemic levels, according to the Oregon Employment Department. Additionally, several federal welfare programs pandemic expansions, like boosted unemployment assistance, expired in late 2021.

With all these factors coming to a head in 2022, “We’re expecting to have a bigger impact,” said Tom Mulhern, executive director of FOOD For Lane County (FFLC).

In 2020, FFLC distributed nine million pounds of food in the county. That’s an all-time record, Mulhern said. That number actually decreased in 2021 to around 8.5 million pounds, for which Mulhern credits the boost of pandemic emergency assistance in 2021, such as stimulus checks and additional SNAP funding.

 

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By Jake Procino, The Chronicle