WALLINGFORD, Conn. — As the need for food continues to grow, the storage space at Connecticut Foodshare appears to be running out. Thanks to a federal grant, the nonprofit announced a $2 million warehouse expansion Wednesday.
Every day in Connecticut, people like Kim Hart, from Witnesses to Hunger New Haven, are struggling to bring home nutritious food for their families.
“I’m going to try to do this without crying, I’m going to try," Hart said. “The rising costs and tied up food supplies have an impact on me and my family.”
Living in New Haven, Hart said there are days when she gets to a food pantry in the early afternoon and there is nothing left.
“You know what that means? I’m going home with my empty cart, taking two buses back home," Hart said.
Hart's story is now becoming a reality for more and more families in Connecticut.
Jason Jakubowski, president and CEO of Connecticut Foodshare, said it serves more than 40 million meals a year and supplies products to more than 600 agencies and local pantries throughout the state.
“I’m telling you, the numbers ain’t going down, and the need is definitely going up," Jakubowski said.
The issue is that the organization needs more room to store the food.
“We need more produce, we need more dairy, we need more meat. We need more of those things that our agencies want and that people want and need across the state of Connecticut," Jakubowski added.
With a $2 million federal grant, those at the Foodshare can achieve their goals. Most of the funding will be put into the freezer where they do not have enough room to store and move their products, according to Tino Rovero, chief operating officer at Connecticut Foodshare.
“When we get into like May and June, this cooler hallway will be full of produce and some dairy, this will be full, and we actually have to get a storage trailer outside," Rovero said.
Rovero said the issue has existed for years, and now the nonprofit gets a chance to solve it by reaching the people who need it the most, like Hart, who spend their mornings waiting in line at local food pantries.
“I’m getting there two, three hours early, to secure my place in line. And it shouldn’t be," Hart said.
“People are hungry. And there’s no reason for people in the United States, man, woman, or child, to be hungry here. We have food," Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, who joined Rovero in the announcement, said.
Julia LeBlanc is a reporter at FOX61 News. She can be reached at jleblanc@fox61.com Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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