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Food Bank of Delaware briefs Dover council on local impact and partnership opportunities
Summary
Food Bank of Delaware presented program metrics for Dover — pounds and meals distributed, backpack weekend meal kits, mobile pantry visits and workforce/benefits outreach — and asked council and local partners to consider collaboration and financial support.
The Food Bank of Delaware told Dover City Council it distributed substantial food and support services in Dover in 2024 and asked elected officials to consider partnership and financial support to sustain that work.
Chad Robinson, vice president of external affairs for the Food Bank of Delaware, briefed council using a packet and a slideshow. He said food insecurity affects many Delaware residents: “Right now, 1 in 8 Delawareans is classified as food insecure. 1 in 5 Delaware children is classified as food insecure.” Robinson described the Food Bank’s mix of immediate food distribution ("food for today") and programs to increase household stability ("food for tomorrow").
Robinson highlighted metrics for Dover and statewide programming: roughly 401,000 pounds of food distributed to Dover partner organizations in the last year (which the presenter said equated to about 481,000 meals); nearly 33,000 weekend backpack meal kits distributed in Dover schools and partner sites; 9,813 household visits to 84 mobile pantry events in the city; and workforce and benefits outreach that connected 66 Dover households to public benefits and trained about 25 Dover residents in culinary, warehousing and logistics programs.
Robinson told council the food bank works with local partners including Delaware State University, Bayhealth, Holy Cross, Pentecostal Church organizations, WAPCO and school and senior programs. He said the food bank helps residents enroll in SNAP, WIC, Medicaid and other benefits and runs a culinary training program that includes transportation support when candidates lack a vehicle.
Council members asked about federal funding uncertainties; Robinson said 14 truckloads of federal product scheduled before year-end were “in question” and represented about 26% of the federal food anticipated for the remainder of the year. Robinson said the food bank’s board had asked staff to plan for scenarios ranging from “bad” to “catastrophe” in case federal programs change.
Robinson invited conversations about collaboration and financial support and offered to provide the council more detailed information from the packet he distributed to members.
The presentation was informational; no council action was required or taken.
