Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding wrote a letter to U.S. Department
of Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue pleading for his continuance of
Pennsylvania’s waiver for the need to collect client names and addresses
and verify income eligibility for those receiving USDA Foods through
The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) through the end of the
fiscal year on Sept. 30.
“While we are working to reopen Pennsylvania amidst the COVID-19
pandemic, we are one of just a handful of states reopening not
experiencing a steady increase in our COVID cases,” said Redding. “We
must continue every effort possible to continue protecting
Pennsylvanians, as they do their part to save lives. This waiver is one
way to continue protecting Pennsylvanians by not requiring both
volunteers and clients of food banks to break social distancing simply
to complete forms.”
Redding’s letter outlines that older adults overwhelmingly comprise
those who work in or volunteer with the state’s more than 3,000 local
food assistance agencies. Those working on the front lines to feed those
in need, are at a disproportionately higher risk for developing more
serious complications from COVID-19. The reality is, that if this waiver
is dropped intake workers, volunteers, and clients will not be able to
maintain a 6-foot social distance.
“While we have a responsibility to do everything in our power to protect
Pennsylvanians and make it easy for them to social distance, we also
have a responsibility to feed those in need,” added Redding.
As a direct result of COVID-19, Pennsylvania’s charitable food system
continues to experience stress from unprecedented demand. A survey of
Feeding American member food banks in Pennsylvania revealed that they
are seeing an average increase in demand of more than 50 percent since
the pandemic began. In a state that normally serves approximately two
million people annually through emergency food response in all 67
counties, data collected since the end of March shows that
Pennsylvania’s charitable food system has served more than 5.5 million
people in just three months. Allowing Pennsylvania’s food banks to forgo
data collection for providing USDA Foods can help to alleviate further
bottlenecks at food distributions, where lines are already long.
“I’m hopeful that Secretary Perdue will acknowledge the importance of
this waiver to Pennsylvania’s overall health and well-being, as he has
done before when we were in need, and we’ll have swift response and
approval,” said Redding. “Throughout this pandemic, I continue to be
grateful for our partners at the federal level who continue to support
Pennsylvania’s work to combat COVID-19 and adjacent concerns, like
hunger.”
For information as it relates to agriculture during COVID-19 mitigation in Pennsylvania visit
agriculture.pa.gov/COVID.
