CROWNSVILLE, Md — The Anne Arundel County Food Bank is receiving $2 million in funding through the county's newly approved 2027 budget, offering relief to an organization that has faced growing demand since pandemic-era assistance dried up.
The Anne Arundel County Council voted unanimously to pass the 2027 proposed budget, which included the $2 million allocation for the food bank.
The Anne Arundel County Food Bank has supplied food throughout the county since 1986. In recent years, demand for its services has only increased as federal and state assistance shrank following the pandemic.
Anne Arundel County approves $2 million for food bank as demand continues to rise
Leah Paley, CEO of the Anne Arundel County Food Bank, said the organization has leaned heavily on fundraising, donations, and partnerships with local farms and businesses to keep food moving to neighbors in need.
"After the pandemic ended that need didn't go away and many of those sources of income dried up," Paley said.
Paley said the funding gap has made it harder each year to serve more people.
"Really what that did was put many more neighbors into a place where they were experiencing food insecurity, so what we found over the last couple of years is the need has continued to increase and the funding that has been available has not risen with it," Paley said.
More than half of the food the organization distributes is purchased directly by the food bank, making direct financial support critical to its operations.
"Over 50 percent of the food that we distribute is purchased, so having money to be able to procure food at a much lower rate than you or I can procure when we go to the grocery store is pretty significant because we can stretch a dollar," Paley said.
The food bank distributes roughly $6 million worth of food each year on average, meaning it will still need support beyond the county's contribution. Even so, Paley said the $2 million allocation eases the pressure of securing funding heading into the next year.
"We could not do what we're doing without the county, it makes up this two million dollars a significant portion of our budget to purchase food," Paley said.
"We are just tremendously grateful to the county that we have been able to secure this funding for next year so that we can continue to support our neighbors," Paley said.
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