High prices forcing local food banks to pinch pennies

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Fort Wayne’s NBC) - Concern is growing, including here in The Fort, over the nation’s soaring inflation, as experts say we have to get used to it for a while.

It’s driving up costs on just about everything, from gas to groceries. And now consumers are watching their wallets very closely.

Rachel Blakeman, Director of Purdue Fort Wayne’s Research Institute, says this is only the beginning when it comes to rising prices.

“So is there light at the end of the tunnel? Hopefully. It’s just something we haven’t seen. Nobody wants to keep going with this. That 2% goal... we have far exceeded that.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says consumers are buying more generic store brands for the first time in almost two years. They are choosing cheaper versions of cooking oil, eggs, sugar, toilet paper, and baby formula.

At the Community Harvest Food Bank, with the higher prices, come more people through the door.

“It’s been hard. We are not getting the donations in that we would normally get in. We are having to purchase a lot more food... In the beginning of the pandemic, people were very wary of going outside. But in our one program, our grocery store, the numbers are going up tremendously.”

Cumberland also tells us they have nine trucks on the road right now, collecting the needed food, but with gas prices skyrocketing, it’s also affecting them on the operations level.

If you can help, Cumberland says that the food bank needs things like canned fruit and vegetables, along with rice and other staples. To learn more you can head to their website.

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