Hundreds of thousands of Utahns experience food insecurity, whether that means they can’t afford high-quality or preferred groceries or are skipping meals. But many others don’t understand the depth of the problem, said Utah Food Bank's director.
Volunteer Steven Hurst walks a long line of cars at a mobile food pantry sponsored by Utah Food Bank in Taylorsville on Monday, June 26, 2023This story is part of The Salt Lake Tribune’s ongoing commitment to identify solutions to Utah’s biggest challenges through the work of the Innovation Lab.
Groceries distributed every Monday afternoon from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ward parking lot off the intersection of 2200 West and 6200 South in Taylorsville help families stretch their budget and ensure they can feed their children during summer break. That’s true even as the problem is getting worse, both according to data from 2021 and the need Utah Food Bank is seeing now.In 2017, nearly 374,000 Utahs experienced food insecurity. That includes people who have reduced quality, variety or desirability in their diet but aren’t missing meals.
On a higher note, food insecurity among children is down across the board. The rate decreased 13.3% statewide between 2020 and 2021 and between 4.3% and 45.8% in individual counties.That doesn’t mean there aren’t families and children missing meals or eating something less nutritious or the kind of food they prefer.
A mobile food pantry sponsored by Utah Food Bank in Taylorsville on Monday, June 26, 2023, provided families with apples, potatoes, chips and a variety of other groceries.To continue this scenario of whack-a-mole, food stamp benefits decreased as gas and grocery prices started to come down, she added.
It’s easy to see the need, he said. Cars fill and empty the parking lot three, four or five times when the pantry is at its busiest.
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