San Diego CA—Feeding San Diego has purchased 125 truckloads of food since March 14 to meet a countywide surge in demand due to the COVID-19 crisis. The organization normally purchases approximately 24 truckloads in an entire year.
The increased reliance on purchased food is helping the organization to meet the needs of the nearly one out of every eight San Diegans struggling with hunger prior to the COVID-19 crisis, but also thousands of newly affected residents as San Diego’s unemployment rate reaches 25%. The increased demand comes at a time when Feeding San Diego has experienced a 30 percent decline in donations from local grocery stores due to high consumer demand.
“We are experiencing a tremendous surge in people facing hunger across San Diego County right now, with an estimated 40 percent facing food insecurity for the first time,” said Vince Hall, CEO of Feeding San Diego. “The wave of children, families and seniors in need isn’t slowing down — and neither are we because no San Diegan should have to worry about where their next meal is coming from. We are grateful to the thousands of San Diegans who have generously donated to Feeding San Diego during this unprecedented crisis. Our donors from across this generous community make our work possible every day.”
Feeding San Diego offers no-touch, drive-through food assistance at hundreds of sites throughout San Diego County. The organization’s food finder map has become a valuable resource to the community and can be found at: feedingsandiego.org/find-food.
Additional community resources are accessible by calling 2-1-1 or visiting 211sandiego.org.