About the Food Pantry and the Need in Our Area
- The Preston Community Food Pantry Inc., is a private, non-profit organization which has been established to help eliminate hunger in South Eastern Idaho.
- The office and Food Pantry is located in
- We supply food twice a month from the pantry and once a month in conjunction with the Idaho Foodbank Mobile Pantry.
- South Eastern Idaho Community Action Agency (SEICAA Food Bank offers food twice a month so there will be somewhere where people can get a food box at least once a week in the community.)
- In 2007-8, our agency distributed 272,440 pounds of food, and assisted people more than 3,509 times.
- The Idaho Foodbank's Hunger in Idaho 2006, the largest study ever done in the state, found that 15,100 people needed emergency food assistance on any given week, and 81,400 people per year needed assistance in Idaho.
- The USDA has ranked Idaho the 24th hungriest state, up from 13th in 2004-2006, and found that 3.4% of those households had members who went hungry. (USDA: Household Food Security in the
- 79,183 Idaho children (21.24%) are food insecure, the 6th highest rate in the country (Feeding America). One in eight Idaho children - 52,500 - go to bed hungry every night. The U.S. figure is 12 million children (Census).
- Two of every three people who rely on the Food Pantry are either children too young to work or seniors who have worked most of their lives. In fiscal 2007-8 the Franklin Mobile Pantry served children 5,643 times. We also served seniors 1,324 times and adults 4,996 times.
- The 2005 poverty rate in Idaho was 13.4% (186,500 people). In Franklin County, it was 10% (12,494 people). The child poverty rate in Idaho was 13.8% (54,439). The National average in 2005 was 12.6% (37 million people), up from 12.5% (35.9 million people) in 2003 [Census].
- More than 40% of households that receive food currently have at least one person working. About half those work fulltime jobs. More than 70% of households that receive temporary food assistance do so because their household income has temporarily dropped below $10,000 per year.
- In 2007-8, volunteers donated over 2400 hours to the
- The
- In 2007, emergency food requests nationally were up 7%for the year, and 48% of those who requested food assistance were families with children. 2007 was the 21st consecutive year that the demand for food has increased. Tragically, 26% of the cities reported they had food-assistance facilities that may have to turn people away this year because they lacked the food to distribute. The mayors expect the need to increase yet again in 2007. (U.S. Conference of Mayors annual survey)
- The Foodbank’s Hunger in Idaho 2006, the largest hunger study ever done in the state, found that 17,300 people in
It also found:
- 32% of the members of households in
- 10% of the members of households are children age 0 to 5.
- 4% of the members of the households are elderly.
- About 85% of clients are Non-Hispanic white, 4% are non-Hispanic black, 6% are Hispanic and the rest are from other racial groups.
- 44% of households include at least one employed adult.
- 85% had incomes below the federal poverty level during the previous month.
- 26% are homeless.
- Among all client households served by emergency food programs in
- 42% of the clients are experiencing hunger.
- Among households with children that have been served, 85% are food insecure and 35% are experiencing hunger.
- 55% of clients in
- 34% had to choose between paying for food and paying their rent or mortgage.
- 36% had to choose between paying for food and paying for medicine or medical care.
