With the pandemic creating levels of food insecurity not seen since the Great Recession, state Senator George Borrello, R-Sunset Bay, and Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz, D-Queens, have joined forces on a measure that would establish a permanent program for distributing surplus agricultural products to food banks, similar to the Nourish New York model.

The Nourish New York initiative was launched in April 2020, in response to the surge of people in need at food banks across the state, as well as the hardships facing farmers affected by supply chain disruptions. With an initial $25 million in state funding, the program directed the purchase of food and products from upstate farms and food producers for distribution to food banks across the state. Another $10 million was allocated to the program in late October to sustain the program through the end of the year. One such beneficiary of the program, an interfaith human service agency named Chautauqua Rural Ministry, reported that their organization alone served approximately 4,000 meals weekly using agricultural products through the Nourish New York program.

“The COVID-19 crisis has reminded us that many families are just a paycheck or two away from food insecurity. Data indicates that since the pandemic, approximately one in ten state residents have become food insecure, with a quarter of those reporting this was a new problem for their households,” Borrello said. “The economic recovery for many of these struggling New Yorkers will extend beyond the pandemic, which is why it is critical that we commit now, to permanently establish and expand through legislation, food relief programs like Nourish New York, which benefit both our farmers and those in need. One of my starkest memories from earlier in the pandemic was footage of despondent farmers dumping milk and leaving crops unharvested in their fields, as desperate New Yorkers waited in lines for hours at food pantries. We need to ensure that doesn’t happen again and this bill is the first step forward.”

The legislators announced the bipartisan initiative today in Corona, Queens, after volunteering at a weekly food distribution site, sponsored by community organizations La Jornada and the Queens Museum. Since last June, the organizations have paired up to serve up to 1,000 families every Wednesday, distributing fresh and nonperishable food items. La Jornada, which has been supported by Nourish New York and other federal funding sources, recently received notice their USDA grant would be discontinued. The news has caused great uncertainty as to how the organization will address the needs of the thousands of families they support in the area.

“As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, nonprofits and government entities alike have been left scrambling for resources to ensure that the basic needs of our constituents are met. At the height of the pandemic, food lines stretched for miles with no end in sight and without a permanent or sustainable product source. As the crisis continues and food insecurity becomes more severe, this bill aims to provide a state pipeline to put food on the table to those who need it most. While the districts that Senator Borrello and I represent are hundreds of miles apart, our constituents share commonality in their dependence on each other for survival,” Cruz said.

The legislation directs the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets to provide financial and technical support for the development of a permanent initiative to provide surplus New York agricultural products to communities in need. This distribution will be effectuated through a network of food banks and other emergency food providers statewide. The measure envisions an expansion of the current, pandemic-specific program and would also complement related efforts, such as the Farm-to-School program.

“While hunger has been a longstanding problem in Western New York, the COVID-19 crisis has greatly exacerbated the need for food assistance in our community. Currently as many as one in six people in FeedMore WNY’s four-county service area may be struggling with hunger due to the pandemic,” said Tara A. Ellis, president and CEO of FeedMore WNY. “Initiatives such as the Nourish New York Program have been a lifeline for local farmers and producers as well as for hunger-relief organizations and the community members we serve. Through Nourish NY, FeedMore WNY was able to procure nearly 1.3 million pounds of nutritious food for distribution to our neighbors in need. We are grateful to Senator George Borrello and Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz for their commitment to fighting food insecurity through this critical legislation.”