Community rallies to protest cuts to food bank funding

U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan led a rally at the Regional Food Bank of the Hudson Valley in Montgomery on Monday in protest of unilateral cuts to the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) that will reduce the availability of food to needy individuals in the region.

“Trump’s cuts at USDA are absolutely devastating for Hudson Valley families. Two million fewer meals in our district alone – that’s our kids, seniors and veterans going hungry. That’s our family farms being hurt,” Ryan said. “Our Hudson Valley community is standing up with one voice and we are urging Trump with everything we’ve got to hear our call. Put country before politics, reverse these cuts immediately and restore the food shipments to put money back in farmers’ pockets and nutritious meals back on families’ tables.

“I really believe we are the greatest country in the world. And part of that is we take care of each other,” Ryan said, before quoting the Old Testament about the importance of caring for the poor.

‘The reason we built this building’

The $1 billion cuts in the TEFAP program announced by the USDA has already been felt by the food bank, which is a large facility in Montgomery that opened in January.

The new 50,000 square-foot facility doubles the organization’s food storage capacity and makes it easier to distribute food locally to the 170,000 people per month in the Hudson Valley who rely on the food bank’s services.

Tom Nardacci, CEO of the Regional Food Bank, said his agency expects to lose 200 tractor-trailers delivering an estimated 8 million pounds of produce, dairy products and other food.

“Last year we received over 400 tractor trailers of food from the USDA. All that food was distributed,” Nardacci said. “This year, 27 tractor trailers of USDA food have already been cancelled. That’s 954,000 pounds of food that’s been cancelled. This definitely means people will suffer. That’s the truth.

“The reason we built this building,” Nardacci added, “is the need in the Hudson Valley has grown exponentially.”

Ryan said the money for TEFAP had been appropriated by Congress and he believed the Trump cuts may be unconstitutional and foresees a court challenge.

A common cause, a common theme

The event attracted a large contingent politicians of both stripes as well as people from the private sector, including farmers.

Marcy Manheim, administrator of Marketing & Corporate Communications at Garnet Health, said the food bank partnered with the health care facility, which identifies food insecure individuals and connects them with services.

“Access to nutritious food should not be an added worry,” she said. “Wellness and nutrition help prevent readmission.”

Jeff Crist of Crist Bros Orchards in Walden said the food bank knows the local farming community well. That’s why he’s partnered with the organization.

“These cuts aren’t just devastating for families who rely on the Food Bank – it’s taking a crucial source of income from farms across the country” Crist said. “If these cuts are not reversed, kids will go hungry and farmers will be hurt. Those are the stakes.”

Assemblyman Brian Maher, a Republican, said he does not see this as a political issue.

“When you make cuts you can’t just take an axe,” Maher said. “These are not the cuts the American people want. It will cost more in the long run.”

Added Assemblyman Karl Brabenec, also a Republican, in a press release from Ryan’s office: “In a time when inflation and the cost of living are squeezing families, cutting TEFAP makes no sense. We should be looking for ways to make government more efficient, not pulling support from a program that helps New York families.”