By Michelle Orge for the Wisconsin State Journal
Dane County has shown tremendous leadership in supporting neighbors facing hunger while sustaining the local agriculture economy. Throughout the pandemic, Dane County supervisors entrusted local organizations to meet the unprecedented rise in the number of families seeking help, focusing on providing locally sourced produce and other foods.
The result — Second Harvest’s Farm to Foodbank Initiative — has provided more than 14 million meals to families throughout Dane County.
Recently, the Dane County Board released its initial budget plans for 2025. Unfortunately, funding for Farm to Foodbank was not included. This critical support for thousands of Dane County residents is at risk.
In addition to Dane County families receiving nutritious food as a result of the Farm to Foodbank Initiative, more than 220 local growers, farmers and others received a much-needed avenue to sell their products. Second Harvest was the bridge linking supply and demand. Food from local farmers went to hard-working families facing rising costs, stagnant wages and other financial strains.
While the increased need was front-page news at the height of the pandemic, the number of families in our community seeking food assistance is even higher now. Dane County pantries saw a 30% increase in need last year alone. So far in 2024, demand is up an additional 20%.
Why is the demand for food assistance so much higher? While the average income for the lowest-wage earners has gone up 12% since the beginning of the pandemic, the cost of basic necessities has gone up even higher. Food prices rose 25%, rent went up 30% and gas prices increased more than 60%. According to the United Way, a household with two adults and two children in childcare will need an annual household income of over $98,000 to make ends meet. One of every 3 households in Dane County doesn’t meet this threshold.
The increased need in Dane County highlights the increased importance of the Farm to Foodbank Initiative. Our pantry partners will face tough choices if these dollars end. They will either need to raise funds to buy food, limit healthy food choices and perhaps even trim back hours and days of operation. It took leadership to build this innovative model, and we are hopeful that ingenuity in the coming weeks can save Farm to Foodbank from ending.
Dane County is a caring and compassionate community that prides itself on coming together for the greater common good. We translate our emotions about challenges facing the human condition into action. We aren’t just empathetic to others. We step forward to see what can be done to make their lives a little easier.
We live in a place that knows how to do hard work. County government has invested millions of dollars in recent years into developing more affordable housing for families. That investment is critical. It creates opportunity and foundations to build success from.
Like housing, food is foundational. It is a fundamental family need and essential to the well-being of all ages. Because of where we live and who we are, I am confident our leaders will rise to this occasion and find a path to continue providing help and hope.
