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Summer means hunger for 1 in 6 San Diego children. Feeding San Diego’s Summer Meals program aims to feed those kids.

Photo courtesy Feeding San Diego
(Credit: Dennis Lint)
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Summer is supposed to be a time of carefree fun for children when they are out of school. But in relatively affluent San Diego County, an alarming number of kids face hunger during summer, when they lose access to meal programs at school.

One in six children — some 120,000 — go hungry across the county, with youth food insecurity even more pronounced during summer. Hunger-relief charity Feeding San Diego addresses this issue by hosting additional summer meal sites to supplement its ongoing distributions throughout San Diego County.

Established in 2007, Feeding San Diego takes an innovative approach to solving hunger with a comprehensive food distribution network to connect “rescued” surplus food from grocers, restaurants, and farms with those in need. (Nationwide, up to 40% of food goes to waste, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.) Feeding San Diego distributes 26 million meals each year to communities throughout the region using 97% rescued food.

“Feeding San Diego’s approach is focused almost entirely on taking the food that would otherwise go to waste and, in a very fast and flexible rescue and distribution system, gets that food to families in need,” said Feeding San Diego’s CEO, Vince Hall.

Photo courtesy Feeding San Diego
(Credit: Dennis Lint)

Feeding San Diego’s decentralized distribution system is a logistical masterpiece that harnesses technology, partnerships with 245 local charities and religious organizations, 100 direct service sites, more than 14,000 volunteers, and a paid staff of 50. This allows for even fresh produce, meat and fish to reach people facing hunger, sometimes within three hours of being rescued.

“We rescue food in Oceanside, and it stays in Oceanside; Chula Vista food stays in Chula Vista; and El Cajon food stays in El Cajon,” Hall explained. “When you do that, you not only reduce the cost structure and carbon footprint of the overall food rescue and distribution systems, you also increase the amount of healthy perishable foods that needy families are able to access.”

While San Diego might be associated with impressive corporate headquarters and cutting-edge tech companies — not to mention a county household income north of $70,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau — the fact is that one in eight San Diegans face hunger. And it’s far from just the homeless who are affected. In fact, Feeding San Diego estimates that only around 10% of the food it distributes serves the homeless. Soaring rents have left many locals with little money left over for food. (Apartment Guide recently ranked San Diego #5 in the country among cities where two-bedroom rent is increasing the most.)

According to the San Diego Hunger Coalition, only 10% of the county’s eligible youth actually participate in federally funded summer food programs. It’s this gap that Feeding San Diego seeks to close.

“We hear from school principals and teachers that students are arriving back in the classroom in September malnourished and not ready to learn because the school breakfast and the school lunch was their main source of nutritious food,” Hall said.

Photo courtesy Feeding San Diego
(Credit: Dennis Lint)

Over summer, many children have limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables, dairy and juice, and healthy proteins. Through a special program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Feeding San Diego provides free, nutritious summer meals and snacks to anyone under age 19 who visits one of its 26 distribution sites in libraries, schools, youth centers, and apartment complexes, with no paperwork required.

With most young people lacking transport, making meals accessible in their own neighborhoods is crucial.

“We are rapidly expanding the number of sites,” said Hall. “It has an indescribable impact on the program participants, because for many of these youth it is the only balanced, nutritious meal they receive every day.”

By texting “food” or “comida” to 877-877, San Diegans can be guided to the nearest Summer Food Service site. Feeding San Diego accepts donations and volunteers at FeedingSanDiego.org, and donations of non-perishable food at its Sorrento Valley distribution center.

—Paul Rogers for Feeding San Diego

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