A new normal for 2-1-1 food requests?

Three months into the COVID-19 pandemic, food requests to 2-1-1s in the U.S. seem to be stabilizing. The new rate is more than double what it was pre-COVID. We analyzed 414,782 food-related requests received by 2-1-1s in 32 states from January 1 through June 12, 2020. COVID-19 was declared a pandemic on March 11th. Before the pandemic, these 2-1-1s collectively averaged 983 food requests per day. When COVID hit, an initial surge of calls pushed daily food requests as high as 8,449. Food requests declined steadily through April and May, before slowing. During June, they have held steady at just over 2,000 requests per day. Mouse over the bars in the chart to see the total requests for each day. Food-related requests include food pantries, soup kitchens, home-delivered meals, help buying food, and feeding children. Data are from all or parts of 32 states served by 2-1-1s that participate in a daily tracking system: AL, AR, CA, CT, DE, FL, HI, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, NC, NE, NJ, NV, NY, OH, PA, SC, SD, TN, VA, WA, WI and WY.

Contributors: Rachel Garg, Balaji Golla, Irum Javed, Matthew Kreuter