Every Saturday, hundreds of people line up at Feeding San Diego’s corporate offices for produce distribution.
Volunteers help load up each person with a mix of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Maria Pamaran was particularly excited about the watermelons and berries that were given out. She was laid off from work two months ago.
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“I have some payables and I don't have a job,” said Pamaran. “I only rely on my EDD.”
She is also recently widowed and the head of a household of eight.
“So much struggle, but I have to stay strong,” said Pamaran.
Pamaran is one of the thousands of San Diegans visiting food banks this year. Some, like Pamaran, for the very first time.
Feeding San Diego, which organizes this produce distribution, says they’ve been serving an average of 800 people every week. One year ago they had just set up this site and were serving less than 50 people.
“The cost of living has gone up so much and really, people’s wages have not and it's really basic math,” said Carissa Casares, Senior Communications Manager with Feeding San Diego.
On top of that, many pandemic relief programs have come to an end.
CalFresh, California’s version of the federal food stamp program, was giving recipients maximum benefits during the pandemic but that stopped in March.
According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the average household lost about $200 in help.
“We knew there would be a correlation with the demand for food assistance and the end of that food assistance and that's what you’re seeing here today,” said Casares.
Now, instead of serving as a source of emergency aid, food banks said they are becoming long-term sources for people facing food insecurity.
And food banks are struggling to keep up.
“We are experiencing, as most nonprofits nationwide, a decline in donations and that really is an indicator of the economic climate that we’ve been in,” said Casares. “With inflation being as high as it's been and people just needing to cut back.”
Still, this food bank isn’t cutting back. As people continue to line up, they’re stretching their inventory to meet people’s demands.
“This helps a lot with my family,” said Pamaran.
