This report presents a more complete picture of what it means to be food insecure in Maryland. It reviews and interprets available data sets from various resources to better understand how wages, housing, and other indicators of hardship (aka “root causes”) interconnect and ultimately manifest in the form of food insecurity.
As COVID-19 opened the eyes of many to the prevalence of food insecurity among our neighbors, it also brought increased understanding of the growing need for on-campus pantries at colleges across Maryland to help meet the growing need for food assistance.
Spurred by lessons learned during the pandemic, we’re committed to building on our already successful Farm to Food Bank Program by supporting efforts that make agricultural systems more resilient in times of uncertainty, get farmed food to those most in need more efficiently by strengthening supply chains, and helping state school districts purchase Maryland produce at a reduced price.
To better serve our neighbors in need as rates of food insecurity remain high, we’ve introduced innovative pilot programs to address the root causes of hunger and identify and assist more food-insecure families across Maryland.
Out of the more than 340,000 total Back Up Boxes we distributed in FY21, we supplied more than 300,000 through local collaborations with the City of Baltimore, as well as Anne Arundel and Calvert Counties.
Check out the latest local and national news about the Maryland Food Bank and how we’re addressing hunger in our communities.
