SPRINGFIELD — Federal funding restrictions are hindering efforts to provide locally grown food to public school students.
That was one of the issues that emerged this week when the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts held its second annual “Voices for Food Equity” event at Springfield College’s Richard B. Flynn Campus Union Building.
The panel brought together Bay State experts and advocates to discuss the challenges of food insecurity, and one of the themes that emerged was food insecurity affecting children, youth and college students.
Abby Getman Skillicorn, special projects manager for Massachusetts Farm to School in Boston, said federal reimbursement rates for food programs are a big barrier to buying locally grown food.
“The fact that school districts have to provide nutritious meals for under $4.25 is, at the end of the day, they need that price to cover the overhead costs of staff and food,” she said.
“I think the idea of ’why not buy local’ really boils down to federal reimbursement rates,” Skillicorn said, “and the other part is state and federal procurement practices, which can be pretty cumbersome.”
She said farmers and local producers are also feeling the effects of the financial crunch.
Andrew Morehouse, executive director of the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, said the committee’s goal is to raise awareness of and eliminate hunger among the state’s youth.
A key part of this is the Campaign to Make Hunger a History, a new coalition of state lawmakers, health care providers and nonprofits.
Panelists described a range of challenges, including increased hunger since the pandemic and limited funding for food programs.
Shannon Rudder, president and CEO of Martin Luther King Jr. Family Services in Springfield, spoke about how the COVID-19 pandemic has stretched limited funding for food security, highlighting the need for upgrades to kitchen equipment and layout.
Everything is at the mercy of a drawn-out fundraising process.
The group pointed out the benefits that home economics classes bring to school-age children and how it helps lay the foundation for good habits in early adulthood.
Growing Needs
Prior to the event, Morehouse explained the food bank’s operations: His organization distributes food to more than 188 food pantries and meal sites across all four counties in Western Massachusetts, distributing more than 1.2 million meals each month.
Morehouse said data shows a sharp increase in the number of families and individuals receiving food assistance, with recent figures from the area’s food bank showing an increase from 115,000 people receiving assistance in February to 119,000 in March.
Morehouse said demand for food increased by 40% over the 12-month period from February 2023 to February 2024.
In Hampden County, about 10.5% of the population, or about 49,104 people, are in need of food assistance.
“We believe there are many causes of hunger, and to the extent we can address those causes, we will shorten the line, so to speak,” he said.
“Our goal is to connect people with local social service organizations that can provide access to affordable housing, transportation, child care, job training, so we can help anyone with wraparound services, because we know these are the causes of hunger,” Morehouse said.
The panel was moderated by Josiah Gonzalez, chief philanthropy and communications officer for Home City Development in Springfield.
Other attendees included Catalina Lopez Ospina, vice president of engagement at Project Bread in Boston, and Jose Lopez Figueroa, director of the Access Services Center and Thrive Center at Springfield Technical Community College.
The next panel is scheduled for Aug. 21 at Berkshire Community College in Pittsfield.
