Balancing rising food, gas costs
Food bank provides year-round lifeline.
Article Author: Deborah Circelli
Article Date:
The fear on people’s faces at food distribution sites last fall is something Susan King will never forget.
It was similar to what King, president and CEO of Feeding Northeast Florida (FNEFL), the area’s largest food bank, saw during the COVID-19 pandemic. People were worried about how they would survive with a temporary hold on federal food benefits.
“There was such an incredible demand for food. We were doing very large-scale distributions, thousands of households at a time,” King said. “The fear and anxiety were palpable. It was like the early days of COVID-19. People were so afraid they were going to lose their benefits.”
Baptist Health and community step up
Baptist Health answered the call for help in December, providing a strategic investment amounting to 215,000 meals for families across Feeding Northeast Florida’s 12-county service area.
With support from Baptist Health and other organizations, King said they were able to address the need. But they are seeing a surge again with gas and food prices at high levels.
Feeding Northeast Florida, which distributes food and other products to more than 400 organizations and programs, has seen continued growth since forming in 2014. Affiliated with Feeding America, the agency provided almost 39 million pounds of food last year, up from 18 million pounds in 2019. The nonprofit works with retail partners, manufacturers and farms to rescue high-quality food for those in need. Additional food resources are also purchased to meet the needs of local families and individuals who struggle to put food on the table. Community support enables the agency to serve over 97,000 neighbors in need every day.
First timers seek help
A recent survey of Feeding Northeast Florida’s partner agencies shows more than 90% are seeing people who have never sought assistance previously, including struggling families with one, two or more jobs, as well as seniors and people with disabilities.
“Almost every one of the comments mentioned that people don’t have money in their budget to cover food,” King said. “With the increased cost of gas and food, they couldn’t do it without the food support of the charitable network. Pantries are filling the void between paychecks and rising costs.”
Agencies like BEAM, which serves low-income residents in Jacksonville’s Beaches communities, are grateful for their partnership with Feeding Northeast Florida.
“We work with 14 local grocery stores through Feeding Northeast Florida’s Grocery Recovery Program, keeping surplus produce, dairy, bakery items, frozen meats and packaged goods in our community rather than in a landfill,” said BEAM CEO Jeff Winkler. “Combined with access to FNEFL's warehouse, which provides food at free or reduced cost, this partnership enables BEAM to distribute the equivalent of over one million meals annually to families struggling to make ends meet.
“What makes this partnership truly exceptional is FNEFL's reliability not just in ordinary times, but also in moments of crisis. During government shutdowns, the COVID-19 pandemic, and natural disasters, Feeding Northeast Florida has consistently stepped up to ensure that BEAM has the resources necessary to meet the surge in community need."
King said they couldn’t do this work without supporters, including Baptist Health.
Hunger in America 'unacceptable'
“I very much believe in the organization’s mission. I find it unacceptable that anyone in America is hungry when there is more than adequate food,” said King, who has been CEO since 2019. “Being able to effect change and work toward solutions to solve problems is very enticing.”
Two years ago, Feeding Northeast Florida built a new 110,000 square-foot warehouse. The agency, which has 16,000 volunteers a year, also has a new kitchen that allows them to distribute 5,000 prepared meals a day. Additionally, a demonstration garden allows them to teach families and individuals the importance of healthy eating. Nutrition and education programs are also provided with free and charitable clinics and health centers.
“It’s really important to connect people to food so they can see how it grows,” King said.
Coming together to feed Northeast Florida
Baptist Health team members stepped up this spring, donating food and funds to help families across Northeast Florida access nutritious meals during the summer. The week-long drive in May, which was part of a larger effort by multiple regional nonprofit hospitals to address local food insecurity, spanned 15 Baptist Health locations.
Food insecurity remains a significant challenge throughout the region, especially during the summer when many children lose access to the meals they receive at school. According to the 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment, approximately 31% of residents in Northeast Florida have low food access, compared to 25% statewide and 22% nationally.
"The Community Health Needs Assessment made it clear: too many of our neighbors are struggling to access nutritious food," said Katie Ensign, vice president of Community Impact for Baptist Health. "This regional food drive to address summer hunger is a unified response: health systems working side by side to ensure our community has the resources it needs to thrive."
Baptist Health joined five other hospital systems alongside Feeding Northeast Florida (FNEFL), the region's largest food bank, to help address the growing need. Together, the organizations collected food and raised funds to provide more than 14,000 meals to support Feeding Northeast Florida's childhood hunger programs during the summer months.
Across Feeding Northeast Florida's 12-county service area, approximately 310,000 people, including more than 90,000 children, experience food insecurity each day.
“Each summer, the struggle to provide meals previously received at school is severely exacerbated for families already facing financial hardship,” said Susan King, president and CEO of FNEFL. “This collaboration with our local hospitals is vital, allowing us to provide no-cost meals and directly address this critical childhood hunger epidemic.”
Baptist Health team members with donated food.
Baptist Medical Center South team members.
Learn more about Feeding Northeast Florida nutrition and other programs. For more information about Baptist Health’s work and the Community Health Needs Assessment, go to BaptistJax.com/community.
