Despite a rebounding economy and a drop in unemployment, the demand for food assistance across the nation hasn’t slowed and supplies are dwindling going into the holiday season.

Low-income families still rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and food pantries to fill empty fridges and cupboards, and the number of people needing assistance is growing, according to feedingamerica.org. 

“Although the general unemployment rate is low, low-income families still struggle with issues of significant underemployment,” said Angie Doss, director of marketing and communications at the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma. “Low wages, underemployment, and unemployment drive need for food assistance.”

The largest increase in food bank recipients happened in 2013, when Congress cut SNAP benefits by $18 per person. Organizations around the nation continue to see the same trend, with not enough food for those in need of assistance. This usually affects the working poor — people who spend 27 weeks or more in the labor force either working or looking for work but whose income fall below the poverty level, according to the Center For Poverty Research at the University of Kentucky. 

James Ziliak, founder of the Center for Poverty Research, said in an interview with the Associated Press that while there’s an uptick in employment, “People who have low-wage jobs, who aren’t receiving regular raises, are finding those earnings stretched thin.” 

Wages and salaries rose only 0.2 percent in the second quarter of the year according to the U.S. Labor Department.

In Iowa, the Rev. Sarai Schnucker Rice, executive director of the Des Moines Area Religious Council Food Pantry Network, said the state’s improved unemployment rate of 3.7 percent hasn’t made a difference.

“The economy is really not getting better for low-income people,” Rice said.

Officials from food pantries across the nation each have different needs during the holiday season to help fill gaps on their shelves. Donations of canned meats help create those meal kits, but supplies often run low.

“We were just incredibly swamped this past week with people preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday needing a little help putting a nice Thanksgiving dinner on the table,” said Deb Hasse, executive director of the food drive Father Fred Foundation in Traverse City, Michigan. “We anticipate seeing a similar situation getting close to the Christmas holiday.”

Those donating to food pantries should think about what it takes to make complete meals, and not all calories are equal, said Nancy Johnson, coordinator of Grace Episcopal Church’s food pantry in Traverse City. She emphasizes providing nutritious food to visitors, and puts together meal kits for casseroles, chili, tacos and other simple recipes.

“We sometimes have a difficult time because getting them the absolute best food that is the most nutritious is often very expensive,” Johnson said. “Sometimes it’s trying to educate the people that come to the pantry to get them to accept some things that are new and different because some of them have had a diet pretty much of ramen noodles.”

Johnson and Haase both emphasized the importance of cash donations. The organizations have boosted buying power through relationships with area grocers compared to typical shoppers.

“We can stretch it a little bit,” Haase said. “People can put right on the memo line of their check that it’s for the purchase of food.”

The (Traverse City) Record Eagle contributed to this report.