Suburban Food Banks Feel Strain of Recession

We know suburban poverty is on the rise, and as the Chicago Tribune reports, one effect of that trend has been a huge increase in demand for food assistance.

Suburban food banks around the Chicago area are reportedly running short on supplies as greater numbers of families are turning to aid groups for help. The Tribune looks specifically at the Northern Illinois Food Bank, which serves 13 counties around Chicago. According to a hunger study [PDF] performed in 2010, the food bank has seen the number of people it serves rise 168 percent since 2006. The food bank served more than 500,000 people that year, 48 percent of whom were under 18. The food bank has even opened a new suburban branch in the last month to try to cope with demand.