PETOSKEY — Grocery store visits and housing costs continue to rise, causing major financial strain for some Michiganders, and Emmet County is no different.
Carrie Klingelsmith, executive director of the Manna Food Project, said the group has been working to help reduce the strain, spending more on food to keep grocery costs lower for Northern Michigan residents.
According to a press release from The Manna Food Project, one in six Michigan residents — more than 1.5 million people — struggle with food insecurity, and one in five children do not know where their next meal will come from. Around 600,000 of those Michiganders are ineligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
The Manna Food Project is located at 8791 McBride Park Court in Harbor Springs.
The number of people experiencing hunger rose to 14.9% in Emmet County, with 48% of food insecure people ineligible for SNAP, according to recent data from Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap study, which uses data from 2023. Manna supports residents in Emmet, Charlevoix and Antrim counties, and all three saw an increase in adult and child hunger.
Through May 2025, the Manna Food Project had distributed more than 700,000 pounds of food throughout the region, a 24% increase from last year. To try to keep up with demand, Klingelsmith said Manna has been seeking outside funding sources and partnerships, including grant writing.
“It is very fulfilling every day,” she said. “Everybody right now is just having a really difficult time, and being there to listen and show compassion to people — I think is super important in the work that we do every day.”
Canned food fills the shelves at the Manna Food Project.
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In the last four years, the group has seen an increase of around 84% of people seeking food assistance, Klingelsmith said. She added that when people are food insecure, they likely need financial assistance in other areas as well.
“It’s a snowball effect,” she said. “It just takes one thing — an ice storm, for example — to set people back where they just can’t catch up. It’s a rollercoaster of people trying to manage the different aspects of their lives.”
For people interested in learning more about the Manna Food Project, how to donate or get involved with volunteering, visit mannafoodproject.org.
— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @KarlyGrahamJrn.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Manna Food Project sees rise in food insecurity, requests for assistance in Emmet County