INDIANAPOLIS – Unemployment rates have fallen across the state, but many Hoosiers still go hungry.
A new USDA report said one in seven Hoosiers face food insecurity, up from one in ten a decade ago.
The report said those numbers are due to increased food prices and inflation.
Emily Weikert Bryant, the executive director of Feeding Indiana’s Hungry, said the report shows why unemployment numbers shouldn’t be the economy’s only barometer.
“While unemployment numbers are going down and that looks great, it’s important to keep in mind those numbers don’t reflect the whole picture,” Weikert Bryant said.
Unemployment statistics also don’t factor in Hoosiers who are underemployed or have stopped looking for a job.
Weikert Bryant added that her organization serves many people who hold jobs, but can’t find a way to consistently put food on the table for their families.
“The newer individuals and families that are coming seeking charitable assistance are doing so because the economy and the recovery of the economy still hasn’t come to them,” she said.
Multiple organizations across the state have been fighting hunger for years.
One such organization in Indianapolis, Gleaners Food Bank, runs several food pantry programs, including a pop-up food bank it used in six neighborhoods this summer. Gleaners partnered with the Department of Public Safety for the pilot program and fed more than 56,000 residents.
However, the program will come to a close Saturday. Gleaners and DPS have both stated a desire to continue the project, but are unsure how to utilize the mobile food bank going forward.
Weikert Bryant said food pantries like Gleaners and Feeding Indiana’s Hungry are doing all they can to help, but they are not a permanent solution.
“Making sure that Hoosiers are employed and becoming self-sufficient is really beyond our scope,” Weikert Bryant said. “Our scope is to make sure that they have that food to get them through the week or give them the energy to get to school, or to the job, or to the job interview.”
