Food banks across Michigan are bracing for food shortages this year after the federal government stopped $4.3 million worth of shipments, including chicken, eggs and cheese ― even as many report that the need for food assistance is increasing.
The canceled orders, meant to go to food banks between April and August, account for more than 2 million meals, according to a March 27 news release from the Food Bank Council of Michigan, which advocates for a network of seven regional food banks in places as far flung as Kentwood and Flint. Food banks are now left scrambling to fill in gaps with their own funds, food purchases and donations.
“We did not see this coming. This was not on our radar in terms of, ‘Oh, we could have a 600,000-pound dip in supply’ and with no real time to react,” said Ken Estelle, president and CEO of Kentwood-based Feeding America West Michigan…