Coronavirus pandemic causes wait times of up to 8 hours at some Kentucky food banks
Thankful Heart Food Pantry in Pikeville gave out about three times as much food as usual on Friday, as the coronavirus left more people in need.
People started showing up at the pantry at midnight to wait for it to start giving out food at 8:30 a.m., according to Trissa Scott, the pantry’s coordinator. The pantry gave out 468 hot meals and 550 food boxes on Friday, whereas it usually provides about 60 hot meals and 250 food boxes.
“We have seen a major increase of people that don’t have jobs,” Scott said. “They’re waiting for the stimulus money and food stamps, but nothing’s coming through so far.”
Thankful Heart has served people from Pike, Floyd, Johnson and Lawrence counties, some of whom are driving an hour or more to get their food.
God’s Hands Ministry Food Bank in Lawrence County has also experienced a significant increase in demand, according to Rachel Wheeler, the pantry’s president.
Wheeler said traffic has doubled since mid-March, from about 100 families served to more than 200 as of Monday.
“That’s the biggest spike I’ve seen in one month,” said Wheeler, who has run the food bank for about 10 years.
Wheeler typically distributes food boxes once a month, but there’s also been an increased demand for emergency boxes in recent weeks.
While the Lawrence County School District has been making breakfasts and lunches daily for students, Wheeler said there is still need from parents who have children at home.
Other new recipients have included people in nonessential industries, such as hairstylists and car salespeople, that have been shut down.
Wheeler said she has been able to meet the new demand so far, but she’s concerned about the availability of donated food going forward.
For anybody who is able to donate, she said food banks need help now more than ever.
“Right now is critical,” Wheeler said. “It’s absolutely critical.”
Appointments help control crowds for other food banks
Other pantries in Kentucky have made efforts to manage supply and demand. The Salvation Army’s food bank in Lexington has been operating by appointment only, according to Jennifer Andrews, the Salvation Army’s social services coordinator for Central Kentucky.
The Salvation Army’s food bank operates from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and employees find out a family’s food need when the appointment is made to help serve them. The method has prevented large crowds and a packed parking lot, Andrews said.
The strategy has also helped avoid shortages. Andrews said the organization isn’t concerned about running out of stock.
God’s Pantry Food Bank also gives out food by appointment where it directly handles distribution at St. Luke United Methodist Church, Central Christian Church and the Community Action Council, all in Lexington.
God’s Pantry used to plan for as many as 30 appointments at each location per day. It now plans for 40 to 80 appointments per day, depending on the location.
“We are not seeing lines that last all day long,” CEO Michael Halligan said. He added that lines are an hour or two long at most.
In total, God’s Pantry helps supply about 400 food programs in Eastern and Central Kentucky.
The food bank had seen about a 35 percent increase in demand across the 50 counties it serves as of April 3, and the higher demand persists, Halligan said.
“There are days, on a given day, where we’ve seen as much as an 80 percent bump,” Halligan said.
Even though the pantry saw a sharp decrease in stock two weeks ago, it still had supplies to meet need for now, Halligan said.
“We are feeding people today,” Halligan said. “We fully expect to feed people tomorrow. We don’t know what the future looks like until we get there, but we fully expect to be able to feed people.”
Despite high demand, food is going to waste
Despite the increase in food need in locations across the country, farmers are seeing their food go unconsumed during the pandemic. According to the New York Times, farmers in Wisconsin and Ohio have had to dump out thousands of gallons of fresh milk. An Idaho farmer buried 1 million pounds of fresh onions, and farmers in south Florida have laid waste to fields of beans and cabbage, plowing their crops back into the ground, according to the New York Times.
The lack of bulk buys for schools or restaurants, both now closed, have caused the destruction of “excess” food, multiple outlets report.
People in need who live in Central and Eastern Kentucky can get assistance at the God’s Pantry website. Those outside God’s Pantry’s region can find help at feedingky.org
This story was originally published April 13, 2020 at 4:23 PM.