One in six Hawaiʻi residents and one in four children face food insecurity, according to the Hawaiʻi Foodbank. They’re working with lawmakers to pass SB2169 to combat food insecurity in Hawaiʻi.
The measure would allocate $2 million to Hawaiʻi's food banks administering The Emergency Food Assistance Program for the next fiscal year.
They include Hawaiʻi Foodbank on Oʻahu, Maui Food Bank for Maui County, Hawaiʻi Foodbank Kauaʻi branch, and The Food Basket on the Big Island.
Amy Marvin, president and CEO of Hawaiʻi Foodbank, testified in support of the bill at the Senate committee on Human Services last week, saying, "I know we are all aware that food insecurity skyrocketed during the pandemic, but it remains extremely high in our state. We now have the second highest rate of child food insecurity in the country."
"At Hawaiʻi Foodbank, we are still serving about 50% more people than we did prior to the pandemic. And last year we distributed almost 25 million pounds of food on Oʻahu and Kauaʻi — that's about twice as much food as prior to the pandemic," Marvin said. "We’ve been really able to reach that increased need due to our major increase in federal funds and philanthropy. But we would really, really need support from the state to continue to meet the needs of our community."
The bill was amended to set aside 15% for administrative purposes within the four county food banks and the state labor department’s Office of Community Services. It now goes to the Senate Ways and Means committee.
