Food pantries feeling inflation’s pinch

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - Food costs spiked 11.4% over the past year. And more Americans are going hungry with the cost of groceries, gas and everyday necessities rising.

Local food pantries are dealing with the pinch of high inflation. The price is affecting how much individual donors and larger programs are able to give to the pantries. Many pantries in our area are looking to Feeding America, a national nonprofit, to keep up with growing demand.

But it’s not just prices that are changing. The food pantries’ demographics are shifting, too.

Staff at Manna for Life in Green Bay say they’re seeing more middle-class people seeking relief.

“I’m seeing a lot more clientele coming in for the need of food and our government commodities decreasing,” Manna for Life pantry manager Angela Cadena told us. “I’m sure they’ve had to deal with all the demand from COVID, but I have definitely seen a decrease in the amount of food we’re getting versus the clientele coming in.”

Although higher food prices are hurting the food relief system, local pantries are doing what they can to keep up. You can help them by providing donations of non-perishable food items to your local pantry.

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