Despite calls to the state about extending the deadline or changing course, the UCHRA Commodity Program will be replaced September 20.
Executive Director Mark Farley will be one of UCHRA’s representatives at a meeting with the state and department of agriculture next Tuesday. Farley said it has been difficult to communicate with the department of agriculture since they announced UCHRA will no longer cover the commodity program
Farley said UCHRA has had the commodities program for 30 or 40 years. Farley said both he and the board chairman have tried to contact the Commissioner of Agriculture, but their efforts have not been returned.
“I’ve made numerous contacts, trying through every avenue I’ve got to reach the commissioner or somebody at that level,” Farley said. “And those have been unanswered as well. So I think that they are signaling they have made their decision and they’re not going to reconsider it,” Farley said.
Farley said Second Harvest of Middle Tennessee will serve 11 Upper Cumberland Counties. Cumberland and Fentress Counties will be served by an East Tennessee food bank, and a Chattanooga area food bank will cover Van Buren County.
Farley said these food banks will need to determine of they have the infrastructure in place to account in the increase in food they’ll need to give out. He said initially, food banks were not prepared, but he hopes to have more answers after the meeting next week.
Meanwhile, the UCHRA food banks in the Upper Cumberland hope to clean house over the next few weeks.
UCHRA Deputy Director LaNelle Godsey said the final distribution event on September 20 will be held at the Cookeville warehouse, but it will be open to residents from every Upper Cumberland County. Godsey said this will be a big undertaking.
“We’ve got to have everything wrapped up,” Godsey said. “So, we’re going to take the time from the 20th to the 30th you know, to wrap up, get our inventory counted. Our goal is to give out every single food item in the warehouse.”
Godsey said any distribution events scheduled after the cutoff date were moved up, and events before the 20th will carry on as scheduled. Godsey said UCHRA will meet with the state food banks and department of agriculture next week to get more clarity on the transition plan.
Godsey said there will be commodities program applications on hand at the event. She said the application is quick to fill out. County coordinators have been asked to go through and mark people who have not completed new applications for this year.
Godsey said paper applications will be on hand, and people who qualify will be given immediate access to food items in the warehouse.
“These will not be bagged up, we’re going to be giving out cases and different things like that,” Godsey said. “so, you’re telling folks they need to make sure they can get the food in their car.”
Godsey said people can still pick up food for others if needed.
