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Celiac.com 11/18/2014 - A recent report from NPR highlighted the challenges for people with celiac disease who turn to local food banks for relief. Many food pantries simply do not stock dedicated gluten-free items for celiac sufferers. Those that do try to meet the needs of their gluten-free clients face daunting challenges. Some basic math can help to put the problem into perspective. About one-percent of Americans, or about 3.5 million people suffer from celiac disease. Assuming these folks use food banks at the same rate as other Americans, then, at any given time, one in seven, or about 500,000 of them will rely on food banks for nourishment. Now, a number of food pantries are making efforts to collect, sort and distribute gluten-free items for people with celiac disease. However, their challenge is compounded by the fact that people with celiac disease are not solely concentrated in cities, where food banks may be more equipped to stock specialty gluten-free foods. Also, those larger pantries that are located in big cities must, by definition, serve larger numbers of people with celiac disease. For example, if we apply the numbers to the Phoenix metro area, with a population of 4.3 million people, about 600,000 people would require food pantry assistance at any given time. That would mean that pantries like the Foothills Food Bank would need to stock food for about 6,000 people with celiac disease on any given day. To their credit, Foothills Food Bank in Phoenix prioritizes donated gluten-free items for people with celiac disease. But keeping enough food on their shelves is a constant challenge, and keeping specialty items, such as gluten-free food requires considerable effort. So, while relief agencies like Food Bank of WNY in Buffalo, NY, try to educate soup kitchens and pantries about the importance of providing gluten-free items, they face an uphill battle that goes beyond their normal challenges of simply providing food. One bright spot for gluten-free eaters in need of assistance is Pierce’s Pantry in Massachusetts, which has dedicated a page on its website to helping people nationwide to find emergency gluten-free food. With these stark realities facing both food banks and celiac sufferers in need of food assistance, please consider reaching out to your local food bank to make a donation of gluten-free food, especially during the holiday season. Here’s a link to Pierce’s Pantry Gluten-free Food Resource Page.

Celiac.com 08/08/2013 - I've happily reported the occasional story about a food bank here or there that has rallied to provide gluten-free food, or about the occasional gluten-free advocate who has helped to collect gluten-free donations, but the truth is that most food banks have minimal gluten-free options for those in need. That fact, and some of the challenging realities faced by people with limited incomes living with diabetes or celiac disease have been driven home in a new poverty survey by Women's Network PEI. Over the last few weeks, Women's Network has surveyed people with limited incomes living with diabetes or celiac disease. That survey has turned up stories about people facing difficult decisions about what food they can eat. Mike MacDonald, manager of Charlottetown's Upper Room Food Bank, says his staff are seeing more people with celiac and diabetes, and that, while staff try to accommodate people with health conditions, it's difficult for them to meet the increasing demand. MacDonald relates the story of one woman with celiac who said she knows that she's risking her health by eating food that she should not eat. For people like her, it's often a choice between food that's not very good for them and no food at all. "It's just more and more people coming through our doors with these restrictions," said MacDonald. Ten years ago, there were far fewer such requests, so it was easier meet gluten-free diet demands. Today there are more and more people making such requests, and there looks to be no end to the rising demand. The good news is that, based on this poverty survey, the Women's Network will make recommendations to government and local businesses. This will, hopefully, initiate some work toward a solution. Meantime, maybe check in with your local food bank and see what you can do to help. Source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/prince-edward-island/story/2013/06/18/pei-food-bank-diabetes-celiacs-584.html

Celiac.com 07/11/2012 - Sometimes, it's the small, local stories that help to capture the larger picture. More and more, community food banks are making efforts to accommodate people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance by stocking gluten-free foods. However, many of those food banks are tight on funds and shelf space, so finding the right balance between the needs of the majority of their clients and the few who need gluten-free foods can be a challenge. Recently, the Pictou County Celiac Support Group in Pictou County, Nova Scotia sought to help tip that balance with a $500 donation to the local food bank. The donation will help to ensure that the food bank will have gluten-free food available for people who need it. After being diagnosed with the disease 10 years ago, Kim McInnis of Trenton went on to found the Pictou County Celiac Support Group. She notes that more and more people are diagnosed with celiac disease each day, and that she plans to work with the food bank to help volunteers make the right selection of foods for the bank. "If I lost my job tomorrow and had to go to the food bank," says McGinnis, "I don't think there is anything I can eat there right now. We just want to help people get the food they need." Eliminating gluten may seem easy enough to people who do not have celiac disease, but to those learning about it for the first time, the process of eating right and getting the proper foods can be overwhelming, McGinnis says. Food bank director, Tom Foley, said signs will be placed in the food bank to let people know that gluten-free products are available and it will also be updating its database to determine how many of its clients need such foods. In addition to the recent donation, the Pictou County Celiac Support Group will also be hosting its annual walk on May 27 from 1-3 p.m. at the Parkdale track. Source: http://www.ngnews.ca/News/Local/2012-04-08/article-2950246/Celiac-support-for-food-bank/1

Celiac.com 10/10/2011 - With the economy on the rocks and the holiday season upon us, many food banks are struggling to keep gluten-free items on their shelves. Since more and more families are relying on food banks for assistance, that means more and more people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance may not be getting the food they need. Responding to this situation last year, Seattle resident Lisa Garza, who runs the blog Gluten Free Foodies, launched a "Gluten-Free Food Drive Challenge" to collect gluten-free donations for area food banks. The ongoing campaign has attracted support from Bob's Red Mill and Zing Bar. Last May, Garza urged the Seattle Food Committee, a coalition of 27 local food banks, to create dedicated space in their pantries for gluten-free foods. Committee member Joe Gruber, director of the University District Food Bank, says Garza's suggestion "made us more mindful," but doesn't foresee instituting it anytime soon. In fact, none of the city's food banks has yet found room for a gluten-free section: According to Gruber, cost and space limitations have severely hampered their abilities to regularly stock gluten-free food. "To offer any form of carved-out space is a challenge," says Gruber, whose 800-square-foot food bank distributes about 45,000 pounds of food per week. "We try to identify gluten-free goods, but they will still end up with other pastas, grains, and cereals." Gruber says the University District Food Bank depends on targeted programs like Garza's to support the wide variety of diets among its customers. Seattle Food Committee staffer Alison Miller says most food banks don't have too much gluten-free food to sort. High prices for gluten-free goods means that food-banks rarely have funds to buy and stock gluten-free items. Than means banks rely on donations for to keep gluten-free food on their shelves. That means that offerings can be slim, and disappear quickly. Still Garza presses on. "I continue to ask for donations to remind people that the need is greater and greater," she says, adding that "I don't want people to suffer the way I suffered." Please consider making a donation of gluten-free food to your local food bank.