Three major food suppliers have closed down this year and eliminated 50,000 pounds of annual donations to local food recovery programs.
Why it matters: Food pantries and community centers that serve vulnerable populations are facing reduced variety and volume of fresh foods.
- Some families now need to visit multiple locations each week to get what they need.
State of play: Historically high food prices, an uncertain economic outlook, and difficulties with funding have led several organizations that regularly donated surplus food to close down.
- Community nonprofit grocer Daily Table is the most notable, closing all four locations — in Salem, Dorchester, Roxbury and Cambridge — after losing federal funding.
What they’re saying: “We’re seeing just as many people — up to a third of the population here in Massachusetts — facing food insecurity, but steadily less food and less money going into the overall food security ecosystem,” Tim Cavaretta, director of operations at nonprofit distributor Food For Free, told Axios…