Southwest Florida food banks need help feeding inflation-impacted families

More and more families need help putting food on the table as inflation soars worldwide, and food banks are feeling the pressure to keep up. They say it reminds them of the early days of the coronavirus pandemic.

The Harry Chapin Food Bank says it’s harder for people to go to the grocery store with prices going up everywhere. Volunteers say demand is up 20% to 30% in the last couple of months. It’s the same situation for St. Matthew’s House, too.

“We saw the pandemic tears and now we are seeing the inflation tears,” said Lorna McLain, director of the food assistance program at St. Matthew’s House. “During the pandemic, we were probably seeing about 18- to 20,000 families. Right now, we are still 20- to 25,000 families each month, so it has gone up significantly. It is not 100 or 200 families. It is by the thousands.”

Places like Harry Chapin, St. Matthew’s House and the Salvation Army need your help to be able to meet community needs, whether that is through cash donations, food donations or
volunteering your time.