Representatives of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank today presented the organization’s seventh Community Hunger Mapping Report at Gettysburg College, focusing on food insecurity and access challenges in Adams County.
The report, developed by the food bank’s Impact and Policy Research team, is the culmination of a year of data collection, research, analysis, and community engagement to better understand the barriers food-insecure residents face and how to more effectively address hunger locally.
During the presentation the policy team outlined key findings and recommendations. Zach Zook, Chief Strategy Officer of the policy team, said pantries in Adams County are “very effective at reducing experiences of hunger among Adams County residents, and they have the greatest impact on households with children who are the most likely to experience hunger in Adams County. This is the most important of the many significant strengths of the charitable food system in Adams County.” Zook also noted that, based on Community Hunger Mapping to date, Adams County is the only county in the food bank’s service area that does not provide residents with access to pantries on the weekends.
Noting that finding and others, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank said it remains committed to collaborating with community partners and anti-hunger organizations to remedy access issues and ensure its mission of ending hunger and strengthening communities across its 27-county footprint is achieved.
Shila Ulrich, the food bank’s CEO, emphasized the urgency of the situation during Hunger Action Month. “September is Hunger Action Month and is a reminder of the food insecurity realities so many of our neighbors face,” Ulrich said. “To say that a hunger crisis exists would be an understatement. Given the challenges we have seen food-insecure residents face, particularly when it comes to access, it is imperative that we work together to look at new opportunities to expand access so our neighbors can have healthy, nutritious food on their tables.”
Across the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank’s service territory, one in eight individuals and one in six children face hunger. During September, the food bank joins Feeding America and other banks nationwide to raise awareness of the hardships community members face; more information and donation options are available at https://www.centralpafoodbank.org/ham/.
Representatives from WellSpan Health and Gettysburg College participated in the discussion. The full report and its recommendations can be found at https://www.centralpafoodbank.org/policyblog-sep2025-1/.
About the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank: The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is a nonprofit organization whose mission is fighting hunger, improving lives, and strengthening communities. It provides nearly 268,000 meals each month by working with nearly 1,000 partner agencies and with the help of volunteers who contribute over 73,000 hours annually. The food bank’s bold goal is to provide access to enough nutritious food for everyone struggling with hunger in each of the 27 central Pennsylvania counties it serves by collaborating with its network and convening and nurturing partnerships to make progress toward ending hunger.