LI Food Bank: 'Still Tremendous Need' Due To Pandemic

WEST BABYLON, NY— Food banks across Long Island experienced record shortfalls of donations and increased need throughout the pandemic. To bridge the gap, Island Harvest relied on purchasing needed food through state and federal programs. Now, the organization is launching an outreach initiative to return to a donation-led model.

Jaime Miglino Franchi is the government relations liasion for Island Harvest and she told Patch that in 2020 the food bank had a 47% increase in meal gaps in 2020.

"We went from serving 300,000 people to 650,000 families," since the beginning of the pandemic, she explained.

"Because restaurants closed and people ransacked supermarkets, a lot of the excess food we got from those venues dried up. So we pivoted to a majority purchased food model and relied on things like USDA boxes and Gov. Cuomo’s Nourish NY program."

Now Island Harvest is teaming up with local politicians to kickstart a spring outreach initiative.

"Now we are slowly returning to donated food to fill our pantries. The annual Stamp Out Hunger food drive, which typically yields more than a half million pounds of food, was cancelled for the second year in a row. This is why we are launching this Spring Harvest Food Collection, with elected officials from all levels of government: from local to state to federal," Franchi said.

On Saturday, Assemblywoman Kimberly Jean-Pierre, Legislators Richberg and McCaffrey, Assemblyman Durso and Congressman Garbarino attended a food drive in West Babylon. Another event is slated for Friday.

“This food collection event is the first of its kind on Long Island, bringing elected officials from both major political parties together at one time in a bipartisan manner to help solve food insecurity,” Randi Shubin Dresner, president of Island Harvest said in a news release.

“We hope that Long Islanders, too, will come together and help support their neighbors struggling to put food on their tables.”

On Friday, April 30, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., collections of nonperishable food and personal care items and pet food will be accepted at:

• Town of North Hempstead Beach Park, 175 W Shore Rd., Port Washington
• Wantagh Public Library, 3285 Park Ave., Wantagh
• Mid-Island Y JCC, 45 Manetto Hill Rd., Plainview
• Barry & Florence Friedberg JCC, 15 Neil Ct., Oceanside
• The Leon Campo Salisbury Center, 718 The Plain Rd.