How higher prices are affecting a local food bank

Food banks are experiencing higher demand because of higher food and gas prices, but those are also affecting the organizations that serve the neediest people in the community.

“Just because we’re a nonprofit doesn’t mean that we get a break: we’re purchasing just as any other family or businesses,” said Oneda Doyal, the executive director of Sharing Ministries Food Bank in Montrose.

Since January of last year, 390 new families have come through the door seeking food assistance, Doyal said — 89 came in March alone.

When prices go up and families need resources, “we’re that resource for them here on the Western Slope,” Doyal said. “We serve anybody who walks through our doors.”

In addition to distributing pantry staples, Sharing Ministries also rescues food from local grocery stores and businesses that is still safe and healthy to eat. Volunteers process and sort the food, which is distributed to families in need.

“We give out canned goods like pastas, rice, vegetables, fruit, junk food — which you would think of as a food pantry — but we also give out dairy every day. We give out fresh produce every day, meat every day, frozen items every day, but our goal is to do it in as healthy a way as possible,” Doyal said.

Sharing Ministries also works with local farmers during the harvesting season to distribute thousands of pounds of fresh produce.

The organization not only serves families, but also dozens of nonprofit organizations in the region.

Donations of food items are always welcome, Doyal said, but an even more effective way to help out is with financial donations and volunteering: with cash donations, Sharing Ministries can purchase food at wholesale prices.

Anna Lynn Winfrey is a staff writer for the Montrose Daily Press.

Originally published in the Montrose Daily Press.