Second Harvest hosts Advocacy Day to raise awareness about food insecurity

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- Second Harvest Community Food Bank is looking to raise awareness about food insecurity in the Northwest Missouri area.

Missouri and Kansas elected officials and political candidates attended the Advocacy Day event Wednesday morning.

Second Harvest presented information about its programs, where it sources food, the counties it serves and other efforts to address hunger in the community.

The presentation was followed by a tour of the facility, where attendees learned more about Second Harvest’s Senior Boxes and Backpack Buddies programs, as well as the food bank’s expansion.

Chad Higdon, Second Harvest’s chief executive officer, said the best part of Advocacy Day is bringing elected officials into the facility so they can learn more about the organization and the work it does in the community.

"For them to come here and see firsthand how our operations work and how these programs are run through the food bank and our distribution partners, we can’t put a value on that," he said. "That's really invaluable because it brings us some leverage, so when we do talk to them about what we’re seeing, they have a better understanding and awareness of what food banks do."

Higdon wanted lawmakers to understand at that hunger isn’t a partisan issue.

"What we can do is really run USDA food programs efficiently. No matter what it is and how it comes about, we want to say yes. We want to make these programs work," he said. "We want to make sure they're getting into our rural communities that we serve so people have access to healthy, nutritious food."

Josh Smead, a Democratic candidate for Missouri's 6th congressional district, said food insecurity is becoming a growing concern as programs such as SNAP and USAID face cuts.

"There’s a lot of people right now in food pantries all across north Missouri that I’m talking to and hearing from that are in desperate need," he said. "The need is going up, and we're seeing people in every corner in our communities who really do need this help."

Smead said government dollars could do some good helping expand local food banks.

"It just means they're going to be able to serve so much more people versus a lot of these smaller... the constraints they have. Sometimes the amount of people you help is dictated by the facility that you have," he said. "Being able to expand them and grow them and have more people have access to the resources is going to be critical right now."

Higdon also said Hunger Action Month is a great way to build awareness throughout the community.

"Just make sure people remember that there are families out there that are struggling with food insecurity," he said. "You can really support them by volunteering, donating your time, donating food and donating money. One dollar, we can turn that into three meals for a family, so there are lots of ways to engage."

For Hunger Action Month in September, Second Harvest said it is hosting its corporate food fight and its dine out for hunger to raise funds and food.