As food insecurity rates continue to rise in the state of Iowa, so has the number of people needing food pantry services. In response, North Liberty Community Pantry officials are expanding their facilities.
The $4 million project, funded by donations, is expected to break ground at the end of the month, with anticipated completion by the summer of 2025.
The North Liberty Community Pantry has seen the number of people they serve rise recently. In just two years, the pantry has doubled the amount of food distributed, Ryan Bobst, the North Liberty Community Pantry executive director, said. He said clothing distribution has increased by around 500 percent and grocery deliveries by about 600 percent.
Natoshia Askelson, an associate professor of community behavioral health in the University of Iowa College of Public Health, has specifically researched food security in the state of Iowa.
Askelson said the state has a food insecurity rate of just over 10 percent, meaning one in nine people face hunger.
As part of her research, Askelson works with the educational component of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, teaching children and families how to make the most of those benefits.
A recent study by the National Council on Aging and the Urban Institute — which used census data from 2018 — showed Johnson County had the highest rate of older adults who were eligible for, but did not receive, SNAP benefits in Iowa.
Johnson County, in particular, struggles with higher food insecurity rates due to the large student body and large immigrant and refugee populations, Askelson said.
“There aren’t a lot of great paying jobs in many places in Iowa, so people are making minimum wage or a little above, which we know is not enough to cover basic needs,” Askelson said.
The current food pantry facility is just over 2,300 square feet and includes a shopping area, storage space, and two offices for seven staff members.
The limited space has caused several issues to arise, Bobst said.
Currently, clothing and food are kept in separate buildings. On two separate occasions this summer, the pantry ran out of freezer space and extra meat had to be store at other businesses in the community.
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The new facility will be nearly four times the size of the old one at approximately 10,500 square feet, Bobst said. It will house six office spaces, ample storage, and allow the space to have food and clothing under one roof.
“Need is the reason that we are pursuing planting new roots and growing into a bigger space,” Bobst said.
Other food pantries in the area have seen unprecedented growth in the last couple years.
Loyal Ulm, the Coralville Community Food Pantry home delivery and operations manager, said their pantry serves approximately 400 shoppers and completes approximately 100 home deliveries per week.
“We’ve definitely continued to see expanded services used more in the last year,” Ulm said.
The Coralville Community Pantry moved into a building almost twice the size of its previous one nearly two years ago and quickly filled the space, Ulm said. They have grown to make their hours more accessible and will likely expand those services in the future as well.
The expansion of North Liberty Community Pantry aims to combat the food insecurity rates in Johnson County, Bobst said.
“I am just so grateful for the community support, both for the campaign and for our mission,” Bobst said. “We could not distribute the volume of items we’re distributing to our neighbors without the community support.”