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Survey Results From Agencies Providing Emergency Food

Emergency food assistance is a major activity in Sacramento.

Seventy-two percent (72%) of the 32 agencies responding to the survey provide a three day supply of food by distributing food bags. Twenty-two percent offer on-site meals. A few agencies provide vouchers which can be used to purchase groceries or meals at restaurants, and home-delivered meals are available from several of the agencies.

Providers report distributing an average of 22,100 bags of food per month with 88% of the bags going to families. An estimated 62,976 people received emergency food bags monthly.

Over 25,000 hot meals are served monthly in soup kitchens. About 70% of those receiving meals are men and 30% are women and children.

Over 17,000 hot meals were served monthly in homeless shelters in Sacramento. An estimated 58% of those served were women and children and 42% were men.

Reports from major food closets in 1988 indicate that the numbers of people served increased significantly since the original survey: monthly in 1988, 79,359 people received bags of food, a 26% increase in one year. Additionally, 58,750 hot meals were served, an increase of 39%.

Even with an increase in the number of emergency food providers, the need if still growing.

Although some agencies have been providing emergency food for 100 years, (28%) have been established within the last four years. Some have been in business less than a year. Among the 32 agencies surveyed, the median number of years that an agency had provided food was 10.

Seventy-five percent (75%) of the emergency food providers report an increase in requests within the past two to three years.

Most food providers limit the number of times an individual or family can receive assistance.

Over half (53%) of the agencies limit the number of times food assistance is given. Usually the limit was a number of times per month per individual or family, but some limit to a certain number of times per year, or within a certain geographic area.

Volunteers are the key to services, but more human resources are needed.

The ratio of volunteers to paid staff is 32: 1. Agencies report that almost 3000 regular volunteers work in their programs. These same agencies have a total of 92 paid staff. About 53% of the agencies can use more paid staff. More than three-fourths said they need more volunteers.

Transportation if largely volunteered and inadequate.

Most emergency food providers pick up donated food and accept foods that are delivered to their sites. Almost half use agency-owned vehicles, 65 % report using volunteer or staff vehicles for food pick-ups, and 53% rely on donors to deliver food to them. Almost one-third (31 %) report needing more transportation.

Donated food comes from many sources but produce, protein, and other special foods must be purchased by providers to ensure adequate nutrition.

The chief source of donated food is local church food collection drives. Many providers also receive food donated by retail food markets and by farmers and food processors. Some also receive food from restaurants.

Nearly all food providers reported that they always need more milk products as well as meat, fish, poultry and eggs. They also reported needing more fruits and vegetables. In addition, many continually need non-food items, such as soaps and cleaning supplies.
About 60% of the food closets purchase food from a food closet warehouse which, for a small handling charge, gathers, stores and redistributes surplus foods donated by industry and other sources. Fifteen of the 32 providers in the survey also purchase food supplements at regular retail prices; only two purchase from wholesale or reduced-price markets, and four purchase directly from farmers or food processors.

Food storage facilities are not adequate.

While most food providers indicate that they have cold, freezer, and dry storage, many indicate that these facilities were inadequate. Over one-third (38%) report that their cold storage is not sufficient for their needs. Almost half (44%) indicated that freezer storage is insufficient, and 31% said that dry storage facilities were inadequate. About one-third (31%) of the providers report that the lack of proper storage facilities has resulted in food spoilage.

Food closets report the most severe storage problems with 65% reporting inadequate refrigeration, 56% inadequate freezer storage, and 74% in need of more dry storage space.

Nutrition guidelines and food preparation abilities are sometimes limited.

One-fourth (25%) of the providers have no nutrition guidelines for preparing meals or making up food bags. Another 22% supply nutrition information and food preparation materials to food recipients. Almost half (47%) of the food closets report that people receiving food sometimes have difficulty preparing the food distributed in food bags, primarily if it requires "from scratch" preparations, such as dried beans, flour, or certain vegetables. Food closets also report that sometimes people are unable to use the food available because they do not have cooking equipment.

Education about life skills if also needed for food recipients.

Almost three-fourths (73%) of the providers report that money management information would be very useful for those receiving assistance. Half of the providers report that nutrition classes on site, shopping tips, and information on food stamps and other assistance programs would also be helpful. About one-third (31 %) indicated that food preparation demonstrations would be useful.

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