County Executive Marc Elrich joined the Montgomery County Food Council’s July Food Security Community Call to participate in a Town Hall discussion with the more than 100 members of our community and to share his vision for the future of food security as we transition from the pandemic hunger crisis response to long-term food resilience in Montgomery County.
Key takeaways from food assistance and other community service providers included:
Poll Data
- More than 72% of providers are seeing significant or slight increases in demand for services.
- More than 80% of organizations are regularly partnering with a wide range of organizations to meet client needs, with more than 15% partnering with over 20 organizations
- 70% of providers are referring clients to SNAP, WIC, and other benefits programs
- More than 65% of providers are referring clients to other food assistance providers
- More than 75% of organizations are collecting a variety of data such as client name contact information, address, household size, age, and income
Key Takeaways from Discussion
Demand for Services
Participants discussed the factors which may be responsible for a 72% increase in resident demand for services and the resources that service providers need to meet those demands. While still recovering economically from COVID, residents are now being affected by inflation which has increased their own cost of living such that they cannot survive with the same resources they received just a few years ago. Because of this need, more than 65% of providers are referring their clients to other food assistance providers. Providers require resources such as transportation, drivers, and personal hygiene items to meet demands.
Provider Collaboration
Distribution sites discussed how they collaborate to meet their client’s needs and potential sources of collaboration such as working with grocery stores, farms, and school gardening clubs. By collaborating with each other, food assistance providers can increase buying power and share resources. By collaborating with grocery stores, food service providers can take advantage of food donations, and by collaborating with farms, they can receive low-cost high-quality produce. Currently 80% of the service providers on this call report partnering with a wide range of organizations to meet the needs of their clients who are often experiencing barriers in accessing employment, housing, transportation, utility assistance, and other needs along with food insecurity.
Case Management and Data Collection
Currently, case managers are working hard to refer residents who qualify for one benefit program (e.g., SNAP, WIC, TANF, etc.) to apply for another. There is also a push to find a way to consolidate the various application processes. Although case managers are doing their best, not everyone’s needs are met. This is because there is a huge shortage of case managers in Montgomery County, resulting in long waits to receive assistance and overworked case managers. Case management is essential as they are often the bridge between residents and service providers. Case management can even go beyond food to areas such as rental assistance, domestic violence survivor support, and other areas of need.
For data collection purposes service providers collect client names, contact information, address, household size, age, and income. However, not all of this information is collected every time, and the data that is collected is often not consolidated between service providers. Accurate and consistent data is needed so that the county knows who is not getting the services that they may be eligible for.