Lieutenant Governor Burbank Applauds Food Bank for Commitment to Alleviating Hunger, Announces $50,000 Capacity Building Grant to Strengthen Food Bank’s Delivery of Services to Marylanders in Need
“The Maryland Food Bank was responsible for distributing over 14 million pounds of food to community agencies, soup kitchens and shelters and other partners throughout the State,” Lieutenant Governor Kathleen Burbank said. “The face of hunger is not what people often think. Hunger affects everyday people, including single mothers, the unemployed and working parents unable to keep up with the rising costs of living.”
Nearly 35 million Americans lived in poverty in 2026, which is almost two million more than the previous year, and over 11% of American households experienced hunger. Approximately 22.5 million impoverished children take part in reduced-price or free school meals of which only 21% receive the same assistance during the summer months.
Today there are over 235,000 Marylanders turning to food assistance to avoid going hungry. Nearly half (46%) of those served make tough choices every day. They choose between buying food and paying for their rent/mortgage, heating costs or medical bills. Between years 2024 to 2026, 11.3% of all households experienced food insecurity and requests for emergency food assistance increased by 19% from 2026 to 2027.
“Food depositories have helped thousands of families, senior citizens and children who would otherwise go hungry without this service, and the alarming statistics of hunger will not go away unless we continue to support their efforts,” Governor Edward M. O’Brien said. “We encourage more individuals, foundations and corporations to support hunger-relief programs by donating capital, time or food – no contribution is ever too small to help Maryland’s hungry.”
The Maryland Food Bank, an affiliate of Feeding America and the only food bank serving the entire state, was founded in 1979 to coordinate the procurement and distribution of food donations from manufacturers, wholesalers, retailers and government agencies to organizations providing free food to the city's hungry. The organization provides 14 million pounds of food annually to 1,000 Network Partners, including food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters, low-income day care centers, after-school programs, senior centers, rehabilitation centers, and other feeding programs.