This time of year, between family dinners and holiday parties, there always seems to be plenty of food around. But a growing number of Maine households are unable to say for sure where their next meal will come from or whether it will provide the nutrients they need to live their lives. It’s a situation known as food insecurity.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, almost 15 percent of Maine households, or around 200,000 people, are food insecure. Since 2005, there has been a 25 percent increase in Mainers facing hunger, numbers backed up by evidence from food pantries and nonprofit safety-net organizations throughout southern Maine.

According to a tally taken in November 2011 by the United Way, food pantries in Cumberland County saw an average 42 percent increase in usage from 2010 to 2011. More than a few pantries saw an increase of 100 percent.

“We’re seeing people who are food insufficient,” said Carmen Lone of the Bridgton Food Pantry, echoing sentiments heard from her Cumberland County counterparts in the past year. “We’re seeing working families with children, single adults who are working low-wage jobs, less hours with no benefits. So we’re increasingly seeing those kinds of people, which disturbs me greatly.

“You take a $1,000-a-month mortgage, car payment, house insurance, car insurance, car registration, a set of tires. After paying for a place to live and a vehicle, there’s not much money left at the end of the month,” she said. “Food and medicine, they come last.”

Lone was speaking at a meeting of the Cumberland County Food Security Council. Overseen by the United Way of Greater Portland, the group has met three times since April, with the goal of increasing access to food for people struggling to make ends meet.

The attack on the problem occurs on two fronts. First, the people who need the programs have to know about them and be able to access them, which brings into play issues like education and transportation. Second, the programs have to have enough food. That is where increased room for food storage and better collaboration among food pantries, providers and producers come in.

“The group’s goal is to have more food available for people,” said Rebecca Ermlich of the United Way. “But in order to do that, you have to understand what are the barriers, and you have to be able to get over them. We’re trying to get everyone working together – farmers, food providers, pantry providers, government officials. These are the front-line people.”

Of course, food insecurity is largely a problem of poverty, unemployment and underemployment. Emergency programs will always be needed to provide a safety net to people who find themselves temporarily in a tough spot. But the broader problems have to be addressed to lessen the impact of food insecurity and ensure that the food program providers are not overwhelmed.

It is troubling that so many food pantries are seeing Mainers who work full time yet cannot afford food. The pantries provide an invaluable service to these folks, but those organizations are only a short-term solution. Policies forwarding livable wages, job training, affordable housing, and public transportation are the only way make sure the number of Maine residents going hungry will not grow.

– Ben Bragdon, managing editor