Bethel Food Pantry Impacted By Federal Cuts To Food Bank

BETHEL— Bethel Area District Exchange and Food Pantry (BADE&FP) Executive Director Dave Bean answered questions astir nan effect connected nan pantry’s “neighbors” pinch nan cancellation of nan United States Department of Agriculture’s Federal Local Food Purchasing Assistance Program. Bean has been astatine nan nutrient pantry since 2004, and managed its move to its existent location astatine 279 Walkers Mills Road/Route 26 successful Bethel. Mary McVey directs The Food Pantry; nan attached clothing district is operated by Maryvonne Wheeler.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture canceled nan Local Food Purchasing Assistance programme that would person provided $1.25 cardinal to Maine. Can you break down really it worked astatine nan Bethel Area Food Pantry?

All this backing is indirect. Good Shepherd Food Bank (GSFB) is fundamentally nan largest supplier of BADE&FP is not straight federally funded, but we  trust connected and are impacted by national programs specified arsenic TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program), LFPA (Local Food Purchase Assistance Program), and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). These programs thief proviso nutrient to our marketplace and support nan individuals and families we serve, arsenic we telephone them, our Neighbors

What section farmers provided nutrient to your clients?

In 2024 our Farm To Pantry Program worked pinch Middle Intervale Farm, Swain’s Farm, Chapman Brook Farm, Sparrowhawk Orchard, and Andover Food Pantry, Woodstock Food Pantry, Servant’s Heart Food Pantry successful Peru, Oxford Hills Food Pantry, Stevens Memorial Hospital Food Pantry, and Old School Food Pantry successful Rumford/Mexico. This programme pays farmers for nan excess nutrient they can’t sell
retail. Then, that nutrient is distributed to Oxford County nutrient pantries. The programme was funded by GSFB done nan Mainers Feeding Mainers program. Mainers Feeding Mainers is funded done nan USDA. If we want to proceed to support section farms and Oxford County nutrient pantries we will request to activity backstage funding.

What did it mean to you and your clientele to person workplace caller nutrient available?

Having section nutrient is basal to our ngo of Ending Hunger successful Maine. We do get immoderate nutrient from unit pickups astatine Mainely Provisions each day, Walmart Mexico erstwhile a week, and Walmart Oxford Hills erstwhile a week.

One successful 8 Mainers look hunger. How do those numbers align successful this area?

Bean refers to 2 charts:

A 2018 “Map nan Meal Gap” shows Oxford County pinch a organization of 57,299. The nutrient insecurity complaint astatine 14.4% aliases 8,250 nutrient insecure individuals.

On nan Bethel Area District Exchange and Food Pantry website nether “Our Reach:” Oxford County and parts of nan six adjacent counties, [there are:] 13,274 individual duplicated Neighbor visits per year; 573 unduplicated Neighbor families per year; 237% maturation successful nan past 2 years

Bean concluded saying, “We will attraction connected Western Maine, Oxford County successful particular, taking attraction of our Neighbors to nan champion of our ability. 40% of our $200,000 yearly operating fund goes straight to purchasing food. We will do nan champion that we tin to return attraction of our Neighbors.”