PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) – The Oregon Food Bank is facing uncertainty after learning this month that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has halted $500 million in deliveries to food banks across the country.
“There’s a lot of confusion, there’s a lot of fear, there’s a lot of stress,” said Morgan Dewey of the Oregon Food Bank.
According to Dewey, the timing couldn’t be worse. The food bank saw rising demand in 2024, with 2.5 million visits to food assistance sites across our region, a 31% increase from the year prior.
“We are in an ongoing hunger crisis. The last thing we need is to see food disappearing from the shelves,” Dewey said.
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Dewey says the USDA cuts will mean 90 fewer truckloads of food for the food bank starting in April. The food bank delivers to 21 regional banks and has more than 1,400 distribution sites statewide. She says that the loss of more than four million pounds of food could have a disastrous impact.
“With 90 fewer truckloads throughout the course of the year from the USDA, you surely are going to see less food on these shelves going out to the pantries,” Dewey said.
With fewer shipments, more families in need could go without, and there isn’t an easy answer as to how the food bank will be able to fill the gaps.
“We’re already seeing families have to make really tough choices of whether to put food on the table or put a roof over their heads, and with less food and food pantries and less food going to our food system. People are going to be in really dire straits,” Dewey said.
FOX 12 has reached out to the USDA about the cuts but did not hear back Thursday.
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Visit the Oregon Food Bank website to learn how to donate or volunteer
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