New City Harvest Report Highlights Response to COVID-19

City Harvest, New York City’s first and largest food rescue organization, recently released a harrowing six-months of COVID-19 report titled, “Always Here for Our City: Six Months of Feeding New Yorkers During a Pandemic.” The report examines how food insecurity has skyrocketed in New York City since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, through the lens of an organization that has been responding to the crisis 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Since early March, City Harvest has rescued and delivered more than 67 million pounds of free, nutritious food—a 89% increase compared to the same period last year—to help feed the growing number of New Yorkers who are struggling to put meals on their tables right now. In the first three months of the pandemic alone, the community food programs that City Harvest delivers food to saw 7 million visits, a more than 20% increase from 2019.

The report points to the economic peril hitting hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers during the pandemic, with the city’s unemployment rate now hovering at about 20%. Food insecurity, which was already a problem in New York City before the pandemic, is expected to increase by 38% citywide, including by 49% among children.

Early on, City Harvest stepped up its efforts to provide food to more than 400 soup kitchens, food pantries, and other community food programs across the five boroughs. When these food programs began closing to the public, largely due to lack of volunteers or safety precautions, City Harvest partnered to open 32 emergency food distribution sites in high-need neighborhoods to ensure that New Yorkers could continue to get the nourishment they needed.

The instability of the crisis led City Harvest to purchase more shelf-stable food, spending $6.5 million on items in high demand that could last longer on participants’ shelves. The generosity of City Harvest’s donors helped pay for that additional, unexpected cost, according to the report.

Additional information included in the eight-page report:

• Detailed accounts of the significant food insecurity increase in NYC
• Alarming statistics on those now seeking food assistance since the pandemic
• Testimonials from City Harvest frontline workers and New Yorkers in need
• Photos showing the the organization's efforts on the front lines

The report was released amid City Harvest’s ongoing fundraising efforts during Hunger Action Month. To read the full report, please visit:

https://issuu.com/cityharvest/docs/6_months_of_covid__2_/1?ff&hideShareButton=true

To donate or get involved with City Harvest’s Hunger Action Month initiatives and make a difference for our fellow New Yorkers, please visit:

https://www.cityharvest.org/2020/08/hunger-action-month/