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Greater Lansing Food Bank warns Clare County food insecurity near pandemic levels; asks for partnerships and donations
Summary
Greater Lansing Food Bank presented county-level data showing a 19.3% food-insecurity rate in Clare County (2022 data), outlined mobile distribution and local partners, and asked county leaders to share resources and funding leads.
Representatives of the Greater Lansing Food Bank told the Clare County Board of Commissioners that Clare County’s food-insecurity rate was 19.3% in 2022 — roughly double the national average — and presented local distribution partners and programs serving the county.
Michelle (last name not specified), representing the Greater Lansing Food Bank, said the organization distributes food through local partner pantries, schools and mobile distribution events across seven counties, including a mobile distribution that took place in Clare County the morning of the presentation. She described the food bank as a warehouse and distribution hub that procures food from USDA programs, retail donations and purchases, then supplies local agencies.
Michelle told the board that the county’s 19.3% food-insecurity rate is higher than the national average (about 10%) and close to pandemic-era levels. She said January household visits to partners rose about 29% compared with the prior year, and that reductions in pandemic-era SNAP supplements will likely increase demand further; some seniors, she said, will see SNAP benefits drop from approximately $130 per month during the pandemic to about $35 per month starting March 1.
The food bank reported it delivered about 878,000 meals across its service area last year — more than one million pounds of food, which the presenter calculated as roughly $1.85 million in value for households served in the region. Michelle said the food bank’s USDA-supplied food has dropped from approximately 30% of supply to under 17%, increasing the need to buy food at market prices.
Michelle identified local partners that receive distribution in Clare County, including the Fair Community Pantry, Compassion Counts Food Pantry, the Hero Center (where a mobile distribution occurred that day), and school-based backpack programs. She invited the board and local officials to help connect the food bank to additional school districts, community gardens and mobile-home communities, and asked officials to share information about SNAP assistance and the food bank’s pantry locator (glfoodbank.org).
Ending: The food bank asked the county to publicize resources and funding opportunities, explore partnerships with local pantries and schools, and consider supporting mobile distribution and community-garden efforts to reduce summertime hunger spikes.
