Help for Inmates 

About Food Banks

 

A food bank or foodbank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough food to avoid hunger.

 

In the United States and Australia, food banks usually operate on the "warehouse" model. They act as food storage and distribution depots for smaller front line agencies; and usually do not themselves give out food directly to the hungry.

After the food is collected, sorted, and reviewed for quality, these food banks distribute it to non-profit community or government agencies, including food pantries, food closets, soup kitchens, homeless shelters, orphanages, and schools.

 

Outside North America and Australia, the "front line" model is often found. Such food banks give out most or all of their food directly to the end users. For both models, the largest sources of food include for-profit growers, manufacturers, distributors and retailers who in the normal course of business have excess food that they cannot sell. Some foodbanks receive a substantial proportion of their food from individual donors, including their volunteer workers. There is considerable overlap with food salvage, food rescue and gleaning, although not with freeganism or dumpster-diving.

 

The world's first food bank was established in the US in 1967, and since then many thousands have been set up all over the world. In Europe, which until recently had little need for food banks due to extensive welfare systems, their numbers grew rapidly after the lasting global inflation in the price of food which began in late 2006, and especially after the financial crisis of 2007–08 began to further worsen economic conditions for those on low income.

 

The growth of food banks has been broadly welcomed, most especially by those on the right of the political spectrum, but also by many on the left, who see them as evidence of active community that is independent of the state. However, academics and commentators have expressed concern that the rise of foodbanks may erode political support for welfare provision. Researchers have reported that food banks can be inefficient compared with state run services, and that some people feel ashamed at having to turn to them.

 

Standard model

 

With thousands of food banks operating on six of the seven continents, there are many different models. In the US, Australia and to an extent in Canada, the standard model is for food banks to act as warehouses rather than as suppliers to the end user, though there are exceptions. In other countries, food banks usually do hand out food parcels direct to hungry people, providing the service that in the US is offered by food pantries.

 

Another distinction is between the charity model and the labor union model. At least in Canada and the US, food banks run by charities often place relatively more weight on the salvaging of food that would otherwise go to waste, and on encouraging voluntarism, whereas those run by unions can place greater emphasis on feeding the hungry by any means available, on providing work for the unemployed, and on education, especially on explaining to users their civil rights.

 

In the US, cities will often have a single food bank which acts as a centralized warehouse and will serve several hundred front line agencies. Like a blood bank, that warehouse serves as a single collection and distribution point for food donations. A food bank operates a lot like a for-profit food distributor, but in this case it distributes food to charities, not to food retailers. There is often no charge to the charities, but some food banks do charge a small "shared maintenance"

fee to help defray the cost of storage and distribution.

 

For many US food banks, most of their donated food comes from food left over from the normal processes of for-profit companies. It can come from any part of the food chain, e.g. from growers who have produced too much or whose food is not sufficiently visually appealing; from manufacturers who overproduced; or from retailers who over-ordered. Often the product is approaching or past its "sell by" date. In such cases, the food bank liaises with the food industry and with regulators to make sure the food is safe and legal to distribute and eat.

 

Other sources of food include the general public, sometimes in the form of "food drives", and government programs that buy and distribute excess farm products mostly to help support higher commodity prices. Food banks can also buy food either at market prices or from wholesalers and retailers at discounted prices, often at cost. Sometimes farmers will allow food banks to send gleaners to salvage leftover crops for free once their primary harvest is complete. A few food banks have even taken over their own farms, though such initiatives have not always been successful.

 

Many food banks don't accept fresh produce, preferring canned or packaged food due to health and safety concerns, though some have tried to change this as part of a growing worldwide awareness of the importance of nutrition. As an example, in 2012, London Food Bank  started accepting perishable food, reporting that as well as the obvious health benefits, there were noticeable emotional benefits to recipients when they were given fresh food.

 

Summer can be a challenging time for food banks, especially in regions where school children are usually given regular free meals during term time. Spikes in demand can coincide with periods where donations fall due to folk being on holiday.

 

History

 

The world's first food bank was the St. Mary's Food Bank Alliance in Arizona, founded by John van Hengel in 1967.

 

By the mid-sixties, several states had ended the free distribution of federal food surpluses, instead providing an early form of food stamps which had the benefit of allowing recipients to choose food of their liking, rather than having to accept whatever happened to be in surplus at the time. However, there was a minimum charge and some people could not afford the stamps, leading to severe hunger.  The first food bank was created with the help of St. Mary's Basilica. Food banks spread across the United States, and to Canada. By 1976, the precursor to Feeding America had been established. As of the early 21st century, their network of 200+ foodbanks provides support for 90,000 projects. Other large networks exist such as, created by CNN Hero Gary Oppenheimer which lists some 6,400 food pantries that can

utilize overproduction of fresh produce.

 

It was not however until the 1980s that U.S. food banks began to enjoy rapid growth. A second response to the "rediscovery" of hunger in the mid-sixties had been extensive lobbying of politicians to improve welfare. Until the 1980s, this approach had greater impact. For the first few years after the change, there was vigorous opposition from left, who argued that state welfare was much more suitable for meeting recipient’s needs. But in the decades that followed, food

banks have become an accepted part of America's response to hunger.

 

Food aid for pets

 

Some U.S. cities have organizations that provide dog and cat food for pets whose owners qualify for food assistance. For example, Daffy's Pet Soup Kitchen in Lawrenceville, Georgia is considered the largest pet food aid agency in Georgia, distributing over 800,000 pounds of dog and cat food in 2012. Daffy's Pet Soup Kitchen was started in 1997 by Tom Wargo, a repairman who was working in an elderly woman's home when he noticed her sharing her Meals On Wheels lunch with her pet cat because she couldn't afford cat food. For the United States, Gleaners Indiana Food bank reported in 2012 that there were now 50 million Americans struggling with food insecurity, with the number of individuals seeking help from Food banks having increased by 46% since 2005. According to a 2012 UCLA Center for Health Policy Research study, there has been a 40% increase in demand for Californian food banks since 2008, with even married couples who both work sometimes requiring the aid of food banks.

 

Dave Krepcho, director of the Second Harvest Food Bank in Orlando has said that even college educated professional couples have begun to turn to food pantries.

 

By mid-2012, US food banks had expressed concerns on the expected difficulty in feeding the hungry over the coming months. Rapidly rising demand has been coinciding with higher food prices and with a decrease in donations, partly as the food industry is becoming more efficient and so has less mislabeled and other slightly defective food to give away. Also there has been less surplus federal food on offer. Additionally, there have been recent decreases in Federal funding, and Congress have been debating possible further cuts, including potentially billions of dollars from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

 

In September, Feeding America launched Hunger Action Month, with events planned all over the nation. Food banks and other agencies involved hope to raise awareness of the fact that about one in six Americans are struggling with hunger, and to get more Americans involved in helping out.

 

People who turn to food banks are typically grateful both for the food and for the warmth and kindness they receive from the volunteers. However sometimes food banks have run out of supplies by the time they arrive. Some find it humiliating to have to ask for food, and that the packages they receive don't always seem nutritious. Some food banks have tried to respond with innovative programs.

 

Reactions

 

The rise of food banks has been broadly welcomed. Not only do they provide a solution to the problem of hunger that doesn't require resources from the state, but they can be viewed as evidence of increasing community spirit and of active, caring citizenship.

 

However there has been considerable concern expressed by some researchers and politicians. Drawing on the United States’ experience after the rapid rise of food banks in the 1980s, American sociology professor Janet Poppendieck warned that the rise of food banks can contribute to a long term erosion of human rights and support for entitlements. Once food banks become well established, it can be politically impossible to return responsibility for meeting the needs of hungry people to the state. Poppendieck says that the logistics of running food banks can be so demanding that they prevent kind hearted people from having time to participate in public policy advocacy; yet she also says if they can be encouraged to lobby politicians for long term changes that would help those on low income, they often have considerable credibility with legislators. As of 2012, senior US food banks workers have expressed a preference to remain politically neutral, which political activists have suggested may relate to their sources of funding.

 

Rachel Loopstra from University of Toronto has said foodbanks are often inefficient, unreliable and unable to supply nutritional food. She said a survey found that only 1 in 5 families suffering from food insecurity would turn to food banks, in part as there is a stigma associated with having to do so.  Hannah Lambie-Mumford, from Sheffield University, echoed the view that some users of food banks find having to ask for food humiliating, and also that food banks volunteers should be encouraged to advocate for long term solutions to the underlying causes of poverty and hunger.