Food pantry gets upgrade

If you've stopped in at the Highlands Food Pantry over the past month or so, you may have noticed some changes. Thanks to a grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation, we are installing a new walk-in cooler/freezer that will provide us with twice as much refrigeration space and four times the freezer space of our current appliances.

Our hope is that this added capacity will allow us to better meet the growing needs we are seeing month to month. If you reference the pantry numbers below, you will see that we are averaging around 40 new families every month. There are a number of factors at play here and the trend fits with what pantries and food banks are seeing across the state and the nation.

The new walk-in cooler/freezer will greatly increase the pantry’s cold storage options.

As noted in a recent study (in which our pantry participated), "over 85% of the people using pantries surveyed across the three counties [Jackson, Macon, and Swain] said they sometimes or often don't have enough food to stave off hunger." Another 45% reported losing weight because of difficulties accessing food (you can read the full story HERE). These are troubling trends and we are doing what we can to ensure we can meet the increase in need.

The increase in need is placing a strain on the resources we normally draw on to purchase food. MANNA food bank experienced a 27% increase in demand in 2023 and has now halted adding additional partner agencies for concerns around capacity and their ability to meet needs. As such, it is falling on us to find new sources for the food we purchase, which is in turn putting a strain on our food purchasing budget. With the added capacity provided by the new cooler/freezer, we can meet the needs of the people - now we just need the resources to help keep it stocked. Please consider a donation to the pantry.