King County Council passes legislation to identify ways to support food banks amid rising inflation

SEATTLE — The King County Council has unanimously passed legislation that calls for the county to conduct outreach and identify resources to help support the county’s food banks as more families experience the impacts of rising inflation.

According to the council, many local food banks and other community organizations that were relying on emergency COVID-19 aid are now needing more support as they face increased demand for their services.

“We know it’s our responsibility to not only feed families but feed them well,” said Maple Valley Food Bank Executive Director Lindsey Habenicht. “Now, increasing client counts paired with increasing costs of goods are forcing organizations like ours to ask ‘how?’ Currently, we are prepared to face the devastatingly grim reality that some of our programs may need to be cut if we don’t soon find new financial supports to help us bridge the gap.”

Food prices in Seattle have also risen by 10.8% from a year ago and the price of groceries has increased by 13.4%, according to a recent Consumer Price Index report released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“Grocery bills are soaring across King County, causing more and more folks to turn to their local food bank for help feeding their families. In turn, our food banks need a little help so they can meet those increasing needs as operating costs rise,” said Councilmember Reagan Dunn in a news release. “I am grateful to my colleagues on the Council for unanimously supporting this legislation so that we can amplify the efforts of the organizations that are working day in and day out to serve those in our communities who are struggling to make ends meet.”

The bill asks the county to identify ways to assist food banks and other local organizations working to reduce food insecurity by conducting outreach efforts to better understand the needs of these organizations and determine the magnitude of food insecurity in King County.

Once this outreach work is completed, the county would then begin implementing these new methods of providing support to food banks and deliver a report to the King County Council on their findings no later than February 2023.

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