Food banks embark on expansions with lessons from COVID

Teshia Elliott works to sort food items in the Atlanta Food Bank’s Hunger Action Center Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2021, in College Park, Ga.

John Bazemore / AP Photo

Food banks across the country are pursuing major expansion projects driven in part by their experiences during the pandemic, when they faced an explosion of need.

“So many people who had never had to ask for help found themselves in a position of needing it and not knowing where to go,” said Ginette Bott, president and CEO of the Utah Food Bank. “It was like somebody flipped a switch.”

Even though demand for fresh and packaged provisions has dropped from pandemic peaks, the need remains far above pre-pandemic levels.