Food First

April 10, 2022 - Food for Thought

April 10, 2022 - Monologue

“Real food shortages will strike the U.S.” – President Biden

This week on Food First Michigan, Dr. Phil Knight and Gerry Brisson, president and CEO of Gleaners Community Food Bank unpack the hot topic of food shortages with their experience of talking to leaders of retail grocery store chains and leaders of the agricultural industry in Michigan. Tune in for the engaging discussion Sunday at 9:00 p.m. on WJR Radio or NewsTalk 760 AM!

Recently President Biden shared a message about food and the supply chain, “food shortages will be real.” This powerful statement brings a ton of questions such as food shortages for who, where and how long? If it is happening, why?

Senate Bill No. 885 is being proposed by the Senate agricultural committee. This bill will help address the food shortages we are dealing with and ensures the Food Bank Network will help safely run the distribution of food. The bill supports farmers, transporters and producers.

Life is more than a headline, the size of a tweet or even a blurb from a President speech. You have to dig and when it comes to understanding the issues, challenges, impact and solutions around food insecurity, we are committed to do the digging that unearths the truth for you and with you. We understand the value of food, the severity of not having enough and both the consequences and blessing enough food brings with it.

Find this episode and all past Food First Michigan episodes at foodfirstmi.org, on Apple Podcasts or iHeartRadio.

Apple Podcasts --> https://apple.co/38UUpFk

iHeartRadio --> https://ihr.fm/38WJ2wN

#FOODFIRST

#FoodFirstMI

#FoodSecurity

#MoreFoodMoreOften2MorePeople

April 3, 2022 - Food for Thought

April 3, 2022 - Monologue

“Inflation, a weakened supply chain from our primary food supplier and an increased need has our food banks looking across the bow of our own boat that sees the storm that’s coming.” – Dr. Phil Knight.

This week on Food First Michigan, Dr. Phil Knight and Gerry Brisson, president and CEO of Gleaners Community Food Bank discuss how we should be concerned but not fearful as we brace for the coming storm that impacts our ability to create a food secure state. Tune in for the engaging discussion Sunday at 9:00 p.m. on WJR Radio or NewsTalk 760 AM!

We are at a five year low in the amount of food banks receive from the USDA. There is a supply chain issue causing more than 200 loads cancelled by the USDA since January and a lot of uncertainty. But, in the end we have a system that works well.

There’s one organization and one network that can do this work at a stateside scale, to keep food safe, handle it properly and to use a network of more than 3,000 different partners to get the food out, and that’s the Food Bank Council of Michigan and our seven food banks. So let us do our work so people are blessed to get the food and the help they need in the way they need it.

It is said that hard times don’t last but tough people do. Food bankers are some of the most resilient leaders I have ever known. They do not quit. They inspire their teams; they pull their hats down and steer their boats to safety. We have done it in the great recession, government shutdowns and now during the pandemic. And we will do it again. We are a little nervous, but we aren’t scared, and we will need your help this time like we did last time. You can help by giving your time, talent and treasure to help us weather these days of difficulties. Find us as fbcmich.org and we will put you to work. Until then, we’ll keep food first.

Find this episode and all past Food First Michigan episodes at foodfirstmi.org, on Apple Podcasts or iHeartRadio.

Apple Podcasts --> https://apple.co/38UUpFk

iHeartRadio --> https://ihr.fm/38WJ2wN

#FOODFIRST

#FoodFirstMI

#FoodSecurity

#MoreFoodMoreOften2MorePeople

March 27, 2022 - Food for Thought

March 27, 2022 - Monologue

“Putting Michiganders first means making sure that they can provide healthy food to their families.” – Governor Gretchen Whitmer

Governor Gretchen Whitmer created the Food Security Council as part of her ongoing efforts to address food insecurity in Michigan, appointing Dr. Phil Knight, executive director of the Food Bank Council of Michigan, as the Chair.

This week on Food First Michigan, Dr. Dawn Opel, the Food Bank Council of Michigan’s director of research & strategic initiatives and general counsel, helps us understand the Food Security Council’s final report and the potential impact it could have on food security in Michigan. The report can be found at fbcmich.org. Tune in for the engaging discussion Sunday at 9:00 PM on WJR Radio or NewsTalk 760 AM!

The final report released by Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s Food Security Council contains evidence-based information on food insecurity to our state. There are three areas of recommendations in the report: Increase Availability of Healthy, Fresh Food; Understand and Support Michiganders Experiencing Hunger; and Improve Navigation to Connect to Food and Nutrition Programs.

Food insecurity affects each segment of the Michigan economy. Healthcare costs associated with food insecurity in our state are about $1.8 billion dollars each year, with total costs totaling to $5.5 billion dollars each year. Recommendation #11 is “improve infrastructure for food insecurity screening, referral, and diagnostic coding in healthcare organizations.” Dr. Opel shares her knowledge on this topic and explain that to address food insecurity as a social determinant of health, we must create infrastructure within the healthcare system to coordinate services and integrate those providing food resources into the treatment plan.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw the role that food insecurity had in exacerbating disparities for those impacted. Creating a statewide solution to address food insecurity as a social determinant of health will take agreement and alignment across multiple sectors including government, industry, and nonprofit.

Find this episode and all past Food First Michigan episodes at foodfirstmi.org, on Apple Podcasts or iHeartRadio.

Apple Podcasts --> https://apple.co/38UUpFk

iHeartRadio --> https://ihr.fm/38WJ2wN

#FOODFIRST

#FoodFirstMI

#FoodSecurity

#MoreFoodMoreOften2MorePeople

March 20, 2022 - Food for Thought