One of the area’s leading providers of food for those in need is cutting back its distribution programs — due to a shortage in food supplies. We’ve followed the Centre County YMCA’s Anti-Hunger Program for several years as its grown from its early days during the Pandemic to an organization serving those in need in both Centre and Clearfield Counties.
Recently, their food stockpile has been dwindingly quickly. Mel Curtis of the Centre Co. YMCA saying: “We’re not getting meat, chicken, fish that we did in the past. The State and Federal programs on milk are pretty much gone. So we don’t give milk anymore.” So for the Agency ,the difficult decision now- reducing the number of food distribution events. Curtis adding: “We are going to have to start cutbacks. The food we get in, we’ll get out. Some of the distributions won’t be getting the amount of food they got in the past.”
The food shortage is due to various factors. The economy, a poor growing season for farmers, and how many similar food provider programs that began in a supplemental role have become primary meal providers. Curtis saying: “During COVID in Pennsylvania and other states they were a lot of small Food Banks that opened up. They depended on large organizations like the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. Now all of a sudden they’re in a situation where they have to supply probably twice as many Organizations as they did before.”
Since the Spring of 2020, the Centre County YMCA Anti-Hunger Program has now distributed more than 9,000 pounds of food.
