|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Second Harvest of Silicon Valley, a food bank serving San Mateo and Santa Clara counties, is facing $1 million in funding cuts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, resulting in the loss of 630,000 pounds of food from May through September, according to the organization.
“It makes it very hard to plan and to ensure that our community has all the food they need to thrive, so we are very much hoping that the federal government will increase their support again,” said Tracy Weatherby, chief impact officer at Second Harvest.
The impact of these federal cuts is visible in the San Francisco Peninsula, where local food distribution programs—from colleges to nonprofits—are seeing reduced quantities of staples like milk, eggs and chicken, even as more families turn to them for help.
For Cañada College in Redwood City, which relies solely on Second Harvest, the impact of food insecurity has become increasingly visible.
The college has partnered with Second Harvest since 2014 to support both students and the broader community, said Adolfo Leiva, director of SparkPoint, a financial and basic needs resource center on campus.
Through the partnership, Cañada College operates an indoor food market and an outdoor food distribution program, both held on campus.
The indoor market is open Tuesdays through Thursdays from noon to 4 p.m. and serves about 150 families per week. The outdoor distribution, described by Leiva as a “free farmers market,” runs Tuesdays from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and serves around 400 families in two and a half hours.
Leiva said food insecurity has become more complicated due to rising food prices, USDA reductions, and funding cuts, which have led to decreased variety and consistency in available food. The college began noticing changes six to eight months ago, with official confirmation coming about four months later.
“We do see a reduction in regularity,” Leiva said. “In other words, some of the items like milk, eggs and chicken, we only receive every other week, as opposed to before when we received them weekly.”
Cañada’s programs serve people from across the region, including East Palo Alto, San Carlos and San Mateo, Leiva said. He noted that food insecurity is also tied to immigration-related fears and that some of the most vulnerable are hesitant to access resources.
“Many of those who are in highest need may feel fearful of coming to get food,” he said. “And when they do come, the food is no longer the same variety or quantity they once received.”
According to a recent Second Harvest client survey released Thursday, nearly 9 in 10 parents said they worry they won’t have enough nutritious food for their families.
Reuters reported that food banks nationwide are experiencing similar shortages due to $1 billion in USDA funding cuts under the Trump administration, which has pledged to reduce government spending, including programs that previously helped food banks purchase food from local farms.
A similar story is playing out at Verbo, a nonprofit in Redwood City.
According to Patty Cardona, director of the program, Verbo distributes free food every Wednesday and Friday to about 400 families, using food from Second Harvest and donations from Costco, Target, Trader Joe’s and Lucky.
The organization typically provides fruits, vegetables, rice, beans and pasta, but Cardona said key items like milk, eggs and chicken — once provided regularly — have been significantly reduced since mid-2024. For the first time in years, Verbo could not give out Thanksgiving turkeys last November.
Cardona said the shortage is deeply felt, particularly in a community already struggling with rising housing and living costs. Many of the families they serve live in overcrowded housing situations, she said, and the food boxes they receive are essential.
“We’re really needed — and we know because they (families) are here every week,” Cardona said.
Weatherby said Second Harvest had been relying on pandemic-era reserves and generous donations from the USDA and private donors to meet demand. Last year, however, those reserves began running out, and the USDA had already started scaling back food allocations, even before the latest round of cuts was announced.
Government officials believed the end of the pandemic meant less emergency need, but food banks like Second Harvest continue to serve nearly the same number of people due to ongoing inflation and skyrocketing living costs, Weatherby said.
She added that the food bank receives about 10% of its food from the USDA. In 2023, Second Harvest provided 127 million pounds of food to the community through partnerships with 400 agencies that distribute meals at nearly 1,000 sites. Of that total, 13 million pounds came from USDA programs, she said.
The rest of the food is either fresh produce — much of it donated or rescued from California farms — or items recovered from grocery retailers and wholesalers, Weatherby said.
Individuals or organizations that serve low-income residents can apply to become a partner agency and, if approved, receive food at no cost, she said.
She added that Second Harvest receives only about 1% of its funding from the government. More than 75% of its donations come from individuals, corporations and foundations.
“It’s really the individuals in the community that help us make this happen,” she said.
