10/06/2026
Helping EVERYONE have enough healthy food to thrive!! That is the goal of Second Harvest. 🧡
Last week, I participated in Hunger Action Day at Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin in Madison with other state legislators! Second Harvest works to ensure everyone in our communities has access to nutritious, affordable food through food acquisition and storage, food distribution, and community partnerships.
We were given an overview of food insecurity here in Wisconsin, followed by a panel discussion that was facilitated by Feeding Wisconsin. Afterwards, we toured the distribution center, where we got to see for ourselves how Second Harvest organizes an impressive distribution system that supports area food pantries and community members.
Throughout the day, we learned about food insecurity trends that are impacting our communities; how local food pantries, food banks, and other community partners collaborate to provide nutritious food for those in need; and opportunities/barriers to improve food security right here in Wisconsin.
✴️ In Wisconsin alone, more than 800,000 people face food insecurity, including almost 250,000 children!! These are our neighbors - in the most prosperous country in the world - worrying about where their next meal will come from. 😔
Below are the rates of food insecurity in Senate District 14 by county (see photo for map):
🔴Adams: 15.1-16.4%
🟠Juneau: 13.9-15.1%
🟠Richland: 13.9-15.1%
🟡Dane: 12.6-13.9%
🟡Sauk: 12.6-13.9%
⚪Columbia: 11.3-12.6%
⚪Vernon: 11.3-12.6%
This is TRAGIC!!
Some of the most poignant messages that stuck with me from this event included…
➡️Hunger is HERE, not somewhere else. Hunger is affecting the people you interact with in your community.
➡️Shockingly, food insecurity has WORSENED (at least doubled) since the pandemic – WHY?? Because wages have remained stagnant while the cost of gas, rent, food, and healthcare continue to rise.
➡️Hunger makes everything HARDER. When a person’s most basic needs are not being met, everyday tasks become more difficult. There is no room to grow or thrive when you are focused on survival.
➡️No one should be hungry, because there IS enough food for EVERYONE!! We need to work to ensure nutritious local food is affordable and accessible for all - we must address Wisconsin food deserts!
➡️Food insecurity is not a political issue, it’s a HUMAN issue. There is nothing partisan about caring for your neighbors and wanting them to be fed. We all need and deserve nourishment.
I was also excited to learn about several of Second Harvest's initiatives.
✅Through their Farm to Foodbank Initiative, Second Harvest purchases fresh, local produce at farmers’ markets and then transports it to food banks - supporting both area farmers and those in need! ✅Through Second Harvest’s Youth and Family Initiatives, such as School Markets, they help kids and families have access to healthy food by basing the programs at schools and youth program sites.
🔶Second Harvest is powered by volunteers. If you would like to help reduce food insecurity in your community, you can learn more and explore opportunities here: https://www.secondharvestsw.org/volunteer-with-us/
🔸Second Harvest is doing such valuable, important work to help Wisconsinites. However, we also need to take meaningful action in the legislature to lower costs and improve wages so fewer people are experiencing hunger and the need for social services decreases.
