food insecuity

Commentary

Time for California communities to step up on environmental justice

Local officials must commit to environmental justice to reduce exposure to pollution and promote access to public facilities, healthy food and adequate housing.

By

Guest Commentary

• July 3, 2020

California Divide

Where to get financial help during coronavirus in California — and is it enough?

California's pandemic safety net programs are straining under overwhelming demand. So did Gov. Gavin Newsom overpromise or underdeliver?

By

Jackie Botts

• June 29, 2020

WhatMatters

How bad are things? We’ll know more today

Newsom set to unveil revised budget. Feds deny approval for N95 masks from Chinese firm. How much state unemployment fund lost from Uber, Lyft.

By

Emily Hoeven

• May 14, 2020

California Divide

Billions in coronavirus aid will go to farms. But farmers say it’s not enough to keep them afloat

Ryan Indart says he may have to kill off some of the sheep at his east Clovis ranch this fall. With restaurants shuttered amid the coronavirus pandemic, he has no market for his animals. When a new flock arrives in October, he won’t have enough space in his pasture if his current flock is still […]

By

Manuela Tobias

• May 2, 2020

Members of the National Guard help assemble food packages at Second Harvest Food Bank in San Jose, Calif., on Tuesday, March 24, 2020. Photo by Randy Vazquez, Bay Area News Group

WhatMatters

Farmers: demand -50%. Food banks: +73%

Newsom unveils plan to get food to hungry Californians. Details of coronavirus-response contracts remain hidden. COVID-19 challenges homeless residents.

By

Emily Hoeven

• April 30, 2020

A man wearing disposable gloves and a bandana over his face walks past a boarded up shop on Haight Street in San Francisco on April 7, 2020. California is entering the fourth week of sheltering in place to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus, and the number of Californians hospitalized and those in ICUs with COVID-19 is starting to edge up only slightly. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

WhatMatters

CA to feds: Can we borrow >$11B for jobless?

California jobless claims soar, Newsom faces tug of war over when to reopen economy. Counties scramble to trace coronavirus.

By

Emily Hoeven

• April 24, 2020

California Divide

Bay Area food bank opens pop-up pantries as demand rises

As Bay Area food banks scramble to meet increased demand for their services, the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank has opened seven new pop-up pantries to fill a gap left by dozens of sites that have shut down due to coronavirus and volunteer shortages. The food bank has seen about 100 of its regular 275 food […]

By

Erica Hellerstein

• March 24, 2020

Gov. Gavin Newsom holds a press conference in the wake of the first COVID-19 death in California, a man who took a cruise from San Francisco to Mexico in February. The governor outlined measures being taken by the state to identify and test all other individuals who were on the same cruise ship as the deceased. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

WhatMatters

All Californians ordered to shelter in place

Newsom orders all Californians to shelter in place until further notice as coronavirus fears grow. Housing crisis complicates state's response to COVID-19.

By

Emily Hoeven

• March 20, 2020

Elizabeth Hopkins, left, fills Sal Vega’s shopping bag with canned goods at a food distribution site in Martinez, CA. Vega, 76, wears a mask, gloves and sunglasses to protect himself while out of the house. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

California Divide

More Californians are hungry, seeking help amid coronavirus job losses

A line of 500 to 600 people standing six feet apart snaked around a parking lot and multiple city blocks in downtown Los Angeles. Many were hotel and restaurant workers, Dodger Stadium employees and airline chefs. All had lost their jobs or were working reduced hours amid the coronavirus pandemic. One by one, they walked […]

By

Jackie Botts

• March 19, 2020

A large sign hangs over the warehouse that says, 'Thank you volunteers' in the volunteer center at the Alameda County Community Food Bank on July 25, 2019. The food bank relies on roughly 100 volunteers every day to package thousands of meals to be distributed. Photo by Anne Wernikoff/CalMatters

California Divide

Food banks face shortages of volunteers; many Bay Area pantries close as coronavirus spreads

On a typical day at the vast food bank warehouse in San Jose, 80 to 100 volunteers pack apples, oranges, pears, squash and cabbage into boxes to be shipped out to hundreds of distribution sites across Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. On Tuesday, just 17 volunteers showed up. All told, more than 1,000 volunteers […]

By

Jackie Botts

,

Nigel Duara

and

Erica Hellerstein

• March 13, 2020

Food Insecuity