BROOKLYN — Almost 50 percent of Brooklyn food pantries and soup kitchens don’t have enough food to feed the borough’s residents, according to a new report.
The findings, released this month from Hunger Free America, detailed that 49.23 percent of the 77 surveyed agencies were struggling to meet demand.
About 70 percent of soup kitchens and pantries saw an increase in the number of people they served over the past year, with 29.23 percent reporting a “great overall increase,” the study revealed.
The population that saw the greatest uptick in utilizing emergency food services were seniors ages 60 and older in Brooklyn, followed by families with children. Notably, there was a 43 percent increase in employed individuals who were served by Brooklyn agencies.
On Wednesday, advocates gathered at the Bed-Stuy Campaign Against Hunger food pantry to call on President-elect Donald Trump to create jobs and raise wages, as well as to oppose House Speaker Paul Ryan’s proposal to cut the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Another report released this month from Food Bank For New York City found that there’s a need for emergency food providers across the city following SNAP slashes.
Citywide, Brooklyn’s pantries came in second in the greatest percentage of agencies not having enough food to meet demand, according to Hunger Free America.
The Bronx ranked No. 1 out of the boroughs, with 56.41 percent of organizations surveyed saying they were struggling.
The number of children throughout the city who are living in food insecure homes is still high, the report details. From 2013 to 2015, 429,000 kids struggled against hunger.
“It is unconscionable that, in the richest city in the history of the world, one in five children still can’t always count on enough food,” Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America, said in a statement.
“We must build the movement needed and force our political system to enact the economic policies and social programs necessary to end U.S. hunger once and for all.”
In Brooklyn, one in four kids, or 25 percent, live in households where they cannot consistently afford to eat. That number is up from 14.54 percent from 2003 to 2008.
