Turkey giveaway highlights growing food insecurity in San Joaquin County
STOCKTON — As grocery prices go up, so does the worry for many San Joaquin County families struggling to put food on the table.
More than 2,400 Thanksgiving dinners were handed out at a turkey giveaway on Tuesday. For a lot of families, these food giveaways can be a lifeline.
The county food bank said the numbers keep growing each year — and it's not just on holidays.
Jewel McCall's family was among those who accepted a turkey dinner. She said high prices everywhere forced them into the line.
"It means a real lot because people are hard for money," she said.
Leonard Hansen, CEO of the food bank in Stockton, said they see roughly double the number of families using their services every day now.
"It's gone from 270 cars a day during the pandemic to 540 cars a day now," he said.
In San Joaquin County, around an estimated 80,000 to 90,000 people don't know where their next meal is going to come from, and the need ramps up around the holidays.
"We're going to end up around 2,400 [Thanksgiving dinners this year]. That's a big increase from last year — 2,000 last year," Hansen said.
On top of inflation and high grocery prices, there's also the lack of grocery stores. In San Joaquin County, 14% of families live in food deserts, which makes it harder to get that next meal.
