Meijer’s Post

Are you a City of Austin employee? If so, you have the opportunity to support Sustainable Food Center (SFC, code 1847) and invest in the environment through the City of Austin Combined Charities Campaign: https://lnkd.in/gft9rtBT  #CommunityPartner EarthShare Texas (code 1800) raises money for SFC (code 1847)  and dozens of other environmental organizations through this workplace giving program each fall. Over the last 50 years of SFC’s history, we’ve learned that we can only transform the food system to nourish our health, land, and livelihood when we have community buy-in. Visit https://lnkd.in/gft9rtBT, enter code 1847, and invest in a more just and equitable food system by donating to SFC this workplace giving season.

Off to the Salford office to do a session with our charity partner, The Trussell Trust 🌱 on Changing Minds (one of their strategic goals) in order to increase understanding, empathy and inspire action around food banks. For anyone that doesn't know, the 3 strategic goals of The Trussell Trust are: ✅ Changing communities We will work with food banks to reduce the need for their services locally ✅ Changing policy We will drive policy changes that tackle the drivers of food bank use ✅ Changing minds We will increase public understanding and empathy, and inspire action https://lnkd.in/eTJN6s5z

All policy should be made through a childhood lens.

📦 Foodbanks are busier than ever. 🗒️ Expanding on previous research on food insecurity and everyday austerity, Dr Alison Briggs Briggs and Prof Sarah Marie Hall's spoke with local charities and community organisations in Manchester and Stoke-on-Trent, exploring the impacts of the cost-of-living crises on their work. 💬 These organisations describe a collective sense of lurching from one crisis to another. While staff and volunteers remarked on how people’s experiences of food insecurity, for instance, were becoming more chronic. 💡 Policymakers need to move towards embedding cash-first approaches to support low-income households instead of relying on the dominant charitable approach. Read or listen to their article: https://lnkd.in/eBEkNBh7

Here we summarise the key points of interest for charities in the main political parties’ manifestos, which launched this week ahead of July’s general election. https://lnkd.in/egt55Fst

The US is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, yet the wealth inequity gap continues to widen, the middle class seems to be disappearing, the cost of living expense increases is outpacing rise in wages, and, and, and... the list goes on. All of these "ands" are creating multiple levels of insecurity-- food insecurity, housing insecurity, education insecurity, wage insecurity. I know several of my friends Christopher Morris, CUDE, CCUFC and Mark Volz, CUDE, CCM who continue to give of their resources and time at these food pantries in Madison. What if each of us were for 30 days to give up "something" that we enjoy (i.e. Starbucks, eating out weekly) and instead donate either that money or goods in kind to our local food pantries? And then once you have figured out that you can probably do without one or two things of small cost in your life, continue to donate that money! Or even maybe go a day without eating anything and provide the money equivalent of meals for that one day to food banks and pantries...and oh by the way it might give you a small "taste" of what it is like not to have food to eat and how that impacts you not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. Use the link below to see what the food insecurity looks like in your community. https://lnkd.in/e6HVa2GP FYI, In my small rural county in White County Tennessee, 16.3% of the population are food insecure- 4,480 people. #foodinsecurity #creditunions

In our 2023 Annual Report, we take a look at trends at FISH over the past few years, particularly comparing pre-pandemic numbers to today. What we are seeing is continued growth in need, as the high cost of living paired with fewer support resources adds more and more strain for families. One area in which we have seen considerable increases is the pounds of food we distribute each year. In 2023, FISH distributed 1,560,603 pounds of food, more than any other year in our history as an organization. Our marketplace could not run without the generous support of our community. We source food from four main sources: donations from our Broomfield grocery stores and restaurant partners, Community Food Share, in-kind donations from our neighbors (which includes food drives!), and purchased food made possible by our incredible donors and by grant funding. All of these support networks allow us to stock a variety of food and personal care items for our families so they can shop for what their families need. Learn more about our work and recent trends at bit.ly/FISH23Report. #FoodBank #FamilyResourceCenter #Trends #AnnualReport

Everyone needs nutritious food to thrive, and in every community in America, people are working hard to provide for themselves and their families. Yet, 14,740 people, including 4,440 children, experience food insecurity in #MercerCounty. In the first 6 months of 2023, we already distributed 1.2 million pounds of food to our neighbors in need - a 67% increase. This #HungerActionMonth, join the movement to end hunger by #donating, #volunteering or #advocating. Every action-big or small-is one step closer to an America where no one is hungry. Check out Map the Meal Gap to learn more about the #statistics of hunger in our county. https://bit.ly/3sYzPRj

🌱 Planning your spring planting? Consider supporting 4-H clubs by purchasing your seeds through us! 🌱 Having had the pleasure of meeting both current and former members, I've been consistently impressed. Their remarkable public speaking skills and adeptness in board meetings are truly astonishing. Let's invest in these future leaders by supporting their initiatives! #Support4H #FutureLeaders 🚀

September is #HungerActionMonth, a nationwide campaign to spread awareness and take action to fight #hunger. In Missouri: -1 in 8 children will face hunger. -12% of Missourians are living in food insecure households. -Black children are almost 3x more likely to face hunger than white children. -Only 1 out of every 20 bags of groceries that feed food insecure households comes from charitable organizations, the rest is provided by programs like SNAP. Solving hunger will take both public and private support. While food pantries and other nonprofit organizations can fill in the gaps and meet some immediate needs, our government must enact comprehensive strategies to ensure that every household has adequate nutrition. Read more about our Food Security #policy goals at https://lnkd.in/g8zekpdP.