Island Harvest concerned about lack of food for families this holiday season

Supply chain issues and rising prices are causing concerns that some Long Islanders could go hungry this holiday season.

News 12 Staff

Nov 12, 2021, 3:52 AM

Updated 1,128 days ago

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Supply chain issues and rising prices are causing concerns that some Long Islanders could go hungry this holiday season.
People at Island Harvest say the crisis is also affecting them as they try to make it a happy holiday season for many.
Peggy Perkins, a single mother of three, says she is struggling to make ends meet.
"Food has skyrocketed," Perkins says. "If it's like bread or eggs, just the basic things you'd get...It's been hard to get them."
President and CEO of Island Harvest Randi Dresner says they are doing the best they can to help those in need, but that is also proving to be a struggle this year.
"Some of these food drives--we are collecting turkey and a lot of stores are telling us they can't sell bulk turkeys to people who want to buy them for Island Harvest," Dresner says.
She says they have heard from veterans that they're not sure they'll be able to have a holiday meal. They say they just don't have the funds for it.
Perkins says with Thanksgiving around the corner, they are going to do the best they can to have a decent holiday meal.
Dresner says they hope to give out around 17,000 turkeys for Thanksgiving. Around 13,000 were given in 2020, but twice as many families were helped in 2019 before the pandemic.