Guest Commentary written by
Gabby Davidson
As a policy advocate for the California Association of Food Banks, Gabby Davidson promotes anti-hunger policy proposals.
Lisa De La Cruz,
As operations manager of the Community FoodBank of San Benito , Lisa De La Cruz manages its warehouse and ensures the community receives food and resources.
With the high cost of living, elevated levels of post-COVID need, earthquakes, and now firestorms — California’s hunger crisis is not just continuing, it’s getting worse.
Food insecurity in California is rising, with 22% of all households and 27% of households with children experiencing hunger.
Food banks are struggling to meet sustained and heightened levels of demand. At the same
time the federal government is threatening sweeping funding freezes for anti-hunger
programs and pushing for cuts to CalFresh, our biggest and most important anti-hunger
program.
If implemented, these policies will place an even greater burden on California’s food banks. The California Association of Food Banks’ 41-member network — which supports more than 6,000 churches, soup kitchens, schools, and pantries that distribute food — is providing groceries to more than 6 million Californians each month.
Food banks can’t do this alone. The CalFood Program, which gives state funding to food
banks to purchase local food, is facing a $54 million drop in average annual funding at the end
of June 2025.
This is yet another crisis in waiting. Food banks will have to make difficult decisions about how to cut back their programs if CalFood is not sustained at $60 million in the 2025-26 state budget.
CalFood supports food banks in purchasing rarely donated items, such as eggs and meat. And it helps food banks meet the diverse dietary and cultural needs of the families and individuals they serve.
Moreover, CalFood is an investment in California farmers and food producers, who are critical to California’s food economy.
Here’s one of the many stories of the impact CalFood funds have in California’s communities. El Nopal is a local bakery that has been a staple in San Benito County for decades. When the pandemic hit in 2020, the bakery saw declining sales and had to make the difficult decision to let two employees go.
When the Community FoodBank of San Benito County approached El Nopal about regularly purchasing tortillas using CalFood funds, the bakery was able to rehire the two employees. Since 2021 the food bank has partnered with El Nopal.
Partnerships like this exist across the state. Food banks are the backbone of food access.
As thousands of Californians are displaced from homes due to devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, food banks remain a steady resource for them to rely on. When temporary fire response resources inevitably end, food banks will continue to be there for the weeks, months, and years following, to ensure Californians can put food on the table.
Not only do food banks help local families and communities, they also help the economy at large. Reducing hunger provides a significant return on investment. Just a 1% reduction in hunger saves California $600 million in prevented healthcare costs.
Hunger is a policy choice. The state must sustain the CalFood program to beat back rising food insecurity, support our farmers and food producers, and make progress toward a hunger-free future.