More meals, more places. That’s the goal.
Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK) is proud to share that on Monday, March 18, it launched the TASK food truck, a mobile meals program offering free, delicious TASK meals at various stops throughout the Capital City.
This innovative project, which marks TASK’s newest step toward its goal to end hunger in Trenton, will initially focus on serving within the city, where 27% of people – and 37% of children – are living below the poverty line, a rate more than twice the average in New Jersey.
Over the past 18 months, TASK has seen a sharp increase in the number of people seeking help. The impact of rising consumer costs, stagnant wages and a lack of affordable housing — along with the end of many pandemic relief programs — have significantly impacted people across the nation.
Therefore, it was no surprise when the U.S. Department of Agriculture released their most recent report, indicating that nearly 17 million households across the country are experiencing food insecurity, an increase of nearly 3.5 million households compared to the previous year. These numbers interrupted a yearslong trend of declining hunger in the U.S., revealing that seniors and families with children have been disproportionately impacted.
To meet the surging need, TASK’s kitchen is currently preparing and serving more than 11,000 meals per week — the most in its 42-year history and nearly twice the pre-COVID amount. In addition to their dining room on Escher Street in Trenton’s North Ward, TASK meals are being distributed at an expanded network of 36 additional community meal sites throughout Mercer County, NJ, and into Bucks County, PA.
In addition, Trenton is a food desert: most Trenton residents do not live within a half a mile of any of Trenton’s three grocery stores. In a city where transportation is challenging, this greatly impacts people’s ability to access food.
In its first phase, the food truck will offer TASK’s signature fresh and balanced meals to more than 1,000 people each week in their own neighborhood, making food more convenient and accessible than ever.
“Food is the starting point for so many – the first step on the path to self-sufficiency and a better quality of life,” says TASK CEO, Joyce Campbell.
TASK will begin by focusing on three core groups who have been particularly impacted by hunger in our area: families with children; seniors; and the chronically homeless. These groups, who are living in poverty at rates disproportionate to national averages, have represented the most growth in diners at TASK meal sites over the past 18 months. In addition, they often cite transportation as a major obstacle to reliably accessing food. By bringing more meals, more places, TASK believes that it can overcome some of the most challenging barriers to food security and help to improve outcomes for the city’s most vulnerable.
“While we know that we have much to learn in our first few months of operation, we are already planning for the future,” Campbell continues. “As the demand for basic needs like hygiene kits has more than doubled in the last year, our goal is to eventually complement our meal service by distributing these products as well. In addition, we intend to bring our programs staff on the road and co-locate with other organizations to help enhance outreach and connect people to the services they need to thrive.”
To celebrate the truck launch, TASK invites everyone from the community to come together for a ribbon cutting at 10:00am on Friday, March 22, at 72 ½ Escher Street. During a brief outdoor ceremony, TASK looks forward to acknowledging the many partners that have made this new venture possible and celebrating this important step toward TASK’s goal to end hunger in Trenton.
TASK, which has been serving the Mercer County region since 1982, serves roughly 11,000 meals, six days per week, at its Escher Street dining room and 36 community meal sites throughout Greater Mercer County. In addition, TASK offers a multitude of resources to encourage self-sufficiency and improve quality of life including case management, education, workforce development, creative arts and the provision of basic necessities. More information about the mobile meals program, including its schedule, will be shared at www.trentonsoupkitchen.org.
