In the '90s, National Food Bank Week was declared to occur during the week of Oct. 16, which is World Food Day. The week is designed to bring awareness to food insecurity, and how quickly a household can go from a full pantry to an empty one.
The Emergency Food Box in Marshalltown can attest to that fact. The number of households the nonprofit serves has increased steadily in the last few years.
Cindy Staron, Emergency Food Box co-chair of operations, said they are very busy. During the last five months, more than 500 families each month have turned to the Food Box for help.
"Typically, it was unusual to serve more than 400 families until we got into the middle of 2023, and now we're serving 500," she said. "We are seeing 25 to 35 families per day, 60 to 70 new families every month. The [new families] have never come in, or it has been three years since they came to us for assistance."
To compare the numbers, in June 2023, they served 375 households. From 2020 to 2022, the Food Box averaged 200 households per month.
The shelves of the Emergency Food Box in Marshalltown have some groceries available on Tuesday. However, with the food pantry serving more than 500 families each month, the food does not stay on the shelves very long. A donation of 4,000 pounds of food in August was all gone before October.
Staron thinks a lot of factors play into the increase, and it is difficult to pinpoint one cause. The cost of rent has gone up, and a lot of the families who use the Food Box are renters. Utilities, gas, groceries and household supplies all cost more.
"We've had a lot of people listening to what's happening across the state," she said. "When Newton closes a plant, Perry closes a plant, John Deere closes a plant, those have to filter down to our families."
Households might be one emergency medical issue away from utilizing the Food Box. Staron said anyone's medical needs can render them one step away from needing help. She used her own family to highlight that issue. Staron's husband needed some dental work, and they had exceeded their insurance deductible. They were able to get the necessary $1,000 to get the procedure done, but other families are unable to do that, she said.
"A car expense -- they need their cars to get to their jobs," Staron said. "If you have a car repair that needs to be done, that might be put ahead of food. So they might have to go to us to get food."
One change in client situations Staron said they have seen in the last year is combining households. For example, one family moves into another family member's house because they cannot find a place to live or afford utilities.
A question she gets asked is if the same people use the Food Box every single month. To help answer that question, Food Box volunteers are in the process of using statistics to determine what percentage of people served are coming every month. Staron said some community members have the misconception that everyone who goes to the Food Box is a monthly visitor.
"It's definitely not 100 percent coming every month," she said. "There are people I know who have jobs, but their employers are not giving as many hours as they once did."
In order to receive help from the Emergency Food Box, Staron said a family must reside in Marshall County. Either identification or a piece of mail should be provided as proof of residency. A family must meet income requirements, such as the monthly income maximum for a family of four is $5,200. She said if a family exceeds the income limit, but is going through a crisis, such as a fire or tornado, they will offer one-time support. Additional help will be provided if a family brings documentation stating the need still exists.
Each family is limited to one visit per month, and will receive three to five days worth of food. Information on additional pantries will also be provided to help ensure the family has enough food.
Support
With the increasing need, Staron said the food bank is very blessed by the community's financial and food support.
"It's amazing to me, the amount of money that comes in to us sometimes," she said. "But it also goes out very quickly."
Half of the food at the Food Box comes from the Food Bank of Iowa in Des Moines. The 2024 Food Bank of Iowa impact report states food insecurity in the state is at a record level, with a 45 percent increase from 2023. Last year, the Food Bank delivered 25.3 million pounds - a 19 percent increase -- of food across 55 counties including Marshall.
While the amount of food from the Food Bank has gone up, Staron said they might not get the basics.
"As an example, in the last month there has not been canned fruits or vegetables available from Des Moines, which means we are buying them locally at a much greater cost," she said. "What we get from Des Moines we get at 19 cents per pound, at average cost. Instead, we're paying $1 or more. Yet, because we have the financial support, we're able to do that. Not all pantries can do that."
Staron said a community-wide Emergency Food Box board of 18 people makes decisions on general policies and procedures, and the day-to-day duties are handled by 80 to 90 volunteers. Knowing the Food Box clients could really use those canned fruits and vegetables, they spent $4,000 at a grocery store. She said if the number of families continues to increase, all of those cans will be gone in four weeks or less.
Another big resource is the Food Rescue Program. Volunteers will go to businesses, such as Dollar General, Kwik Star, Pizza Ranch and Theisen's, to collect food which has passed its expiration date, and would be thrown away. Staron said everyone should review food safety, and see how long things last. As an example, she said milk is still good for up to five days after the expiration date, as long as good food practices and storage are followed. Staron speculated the expiration date on packages serves primarily as protection for the manufacturing company.
"The quality of that food in that can is still OK after a couple, three years," she said. "That has helped us a lot in what we can have on our shelves."
One example of the Food Rescue Program is Kwik Star sandwiches that are discarded if they have been on the shelf for a certain number of hours. The Food Box made an arrangement with Kwik Star to take such items.
"They give them to us and we can give them to families," Staron said.
The donations of the community and the food drives have also been a blessing. She said New Hope hosted a food drive in August and delivered 4,000 pounds of food, including a generous amount of boxed cereals and peanut butter.
"They asked if it was going to get us to Christmas," Staron said. "I said, 'I hope this gets us into October.' It's all gone. Whatever they brought us is all gone. It was gone three weeks ago."
Hours: 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday; 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Friday
Phone: 641-753-2801
Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or [email protected].