Prior to 3/12, The Mid-South Food Bank averaged about two Mobile Pantry distributions a day. Now they are running as many as 10 a day, including Saturdays. Although some food is donated, much more is needed for our area and other costs are incurred daily such as freight, deliver. The Mid-South Food band has purchased nearly a million dollars in food in the last month.
According to updated Map the Meal Gap research released by Feeding America, in Mid-South Food Bank's 31-county service area, more than 370,370 people, or 17.8% of the population, is food insecure. The rate of child food insecurity is 21.6 %. More than 110,000 Mid-South children are food insecure.
Here are some of the programs in the Mid-South Food Bank:
KIDS: In Mid-South Food Bank's service area, 23.3 percent of children are food insecure, according to the latest Map the Meal Gap hunger study. That's nearly one in every 5 children. Even short-term nutritional deficiency can impact a child's health and ability to learn.
Mid-South Food Bank serves children in our region by distributing food through its partner agencies, and through our child hunger programs, Kids Cafe, Food for Kids BackPacks and Healthy School Pantry:
Kids Cafe provides nutritious meals to kids daily in a safe environment, where they are served by volunteers and have an opportunity to learn the importance of nutritious eating through delicious meals and instruction.
The Food for Kids BackPack Program provides a BackPack box filled with nutritious, child-friendly food for children to take home for the weekend. Each backpack contains six complete meals and some fun, nutrition information.
Healthy School Pantries are set up at school, providing monthly supplemental food boxes for qualified students and their families.
FAMILIES:
Hunger's Hope distributes food and other groceries through our network of Partner Agencies: food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters, youth programs, senior programs, rehabilitation and residential centers. The Mobile Pantry provides direct distribution of fresh produce, frozen meat, bakery, dairy and other perishable and non-perishable foods to underserved communities.