A new campaign to tackle food insecurity launched on Wednesday in downtown Buffalo. Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield’s “UnHungry” campaign is seeking donations to benefit 15 food distribution organizations across four states, including Feedmore and Foodlink in Western New York.
Elisha Mykins is a rural program specialist for Foodlink, which serves Western New York’s more rural counties. She says lately, the need is great amidst challenges with SNAP payments.
"On average, we're seeing about 30% increase at almost every food pantry we work with in all of our 10 counties," Mykins said. "I was actually just at the Salvation Army in Canandaigua, and I met with her after she was done, and it was just one family after the next. And a lot of them are new families who have never used the Emergency Food Network before, but without having their SNAP benefits, they go right to the pantry to kind of get some answers and some help."
According to data from Feeding America, more than 13 percent of Erie County faces food insecurity. The rate is slightly more than 15 percent in the Southern Tier. Especially in rural areas like the Southern Tier, families face unique barriers to both earning an income and reaching food banks when they need it.
"There is clearly a misconception that people [in rural areas] do have a vehicle," Mykins said. "Public transportation is almost impossible in rural areas."
A 2023 article in the journal Transportation points out that rural households without cars earn 64 percent less than rural households with cars, and 40 percent less than their non-rural counterparts.
Mykins says organizations like hers meet rural communities where they are at.
"So, we have a lot of really great partners we work with that offer delivery, which is amazing. We do also have pop-up pantries too, where you can pick up for multiple families," Mykins said. "And then if there is an individual that is willing to pick up for someone that might be homebound, they can deliver to them. So it really, really helps."
On Wednesday morning, employees in downtown Buffalo volunteered to write over 800 handwritten notes for food pantry meal delivery recipients, an added gesture to those who will be served by the UnHungry campaign.
You can learn more about the UnHungry campaign at UnHungry.org.
