Photos by Ella Manthey
Food insecurity is often misunderstood. It doesn’t always look the way people expect, and increasingly, it affects working families doing everything they can to make ends meet.
For Meredith Knopp, President and CEO of the St. Louis Area Foodbank, addressing hunger relief requires more than putting food on shelves. It means meeting people where they are, building stronger community partnerships, and reimagining how food reaches those who need it most.
From mobile food markets and school-based programs to technology-driven distribution and community partnerships, Knopp is leading an effort to address not only immediate food insecurity but the underlying barriers that keep families from accessing nutritious food.
With a background in the U.S. Army and years of nonprofit leadership experience, Knopp brings a mission-driven approach to an organization serving 26 counties across Missouri and Illinois.
We recently caught up with Knopp to discuss the changing face of hunger, the future of food access, and how the St. Louis community can help make a difference.
What are you seeing in the St. Louis region today when it comes to hunger relief that people might not recognize?
What we’re seeing is more working families struggling with food insecurity. I think that’s what people don’t recognize. If I fall and break my leg, it’s obvious. You can see there’s a physical change. If I haven’t eaten in a day and a half, you won’t be able to tell just by looking at me.
We have far too many families and working men and women who are struggling and suffering in silence. It’s hard to ask for help, but we all need it. I really want to help people understand how to destigmatize asking for help, because a lot of people assume that if you have a job, you must be fine.
The reality is that everything is more expensive now. Grocery prices, gas, medicine, housing: all those costs have gone up. That hits everybody, but it hits people with lower incomes or fixed incomes especially hard. You can have a job and still be one unexpected expense away from needing assistance.
You have talked about the “Foodbank of the future.” What does that look like, and how is the organization changing its approach to hunger relief?
When I came to the St. Louis Area Foodbank in 2018, it was very much what we would call a “push model:” Whatever came in, we said yes, thank you, and pushed it out.
Now we’re using data to inform our decisions. We can look at populations, poverty, where people are living, eating patterns, food preferences, and other resources. If people don’t need certain things from us, that’s fine. Let’s direct those resources somewhere else.
When we talk about the Foodbank of the future, it’s programs like Food on the Move, which started with an idea and has grown into a mobile food distribution program. We have school markets, F.A.R.M.s., and several new pilot programs focused on economic mobility, seniors, and food as medicine.
We’re continually evolving how we think. Instead of saying, “We’re the Foodbank, and this is what we do,” we’re asking, “We’re the Foodbank. Might we be able to assist in some way? And if so, what is that?”
We serve 26 counties across two states, and they all have different needs. It’s really about building relationships, going into communities, having seats at tables — and sometimes building new tables — to make sure we have the right people there to figure out the best way to serve our neighbors.
The St. Louis Area Foodbank’s philosophy centers on nourishing people, empowering communities, and transforming systems. How does that translate into work beyond simply distributing food?
When people come to the St. Louis Area Foodbank, usually through one of our pantry partners, it’s because they have an immediate need. They’re hungry. Something has happened that disrupted their lifestyle, and they need food now.
Then it’s about guiding them from nourishing themselves to empowering them to get back on their feet. What else do they need? Are there other federal programs they should be accessing? Do they need housing support or transportation? How do we help people take control and realize that we need to work together to make this happen?
Transforming systems is about listening, advocating, and working with policymakers. It’s about things like the Farm Bill. Hunger is a nonpartisan issue. It’s a people issue.
We’re also looking at how to make it easier for people to access food when they don’t have a car, when the bus is two miles away, or when there isn’t a grocery store within five miles. All of that drives what we do.
The St. Louis Area Foodbank serves 26 counties across Missouri and Illinois through a network of nearly 600 partners. What does that scale tell you about the importance of treating hunger as a regional issue?
Hunger doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t affect people only in one zip code or one demographic. It can literally affect anyone for a myriad of different reasons.
Right now, one in seven people in the 26 counties we serve is food insecure. That’s one in five children. As a mom, that is way too many.
People need to recognize that food insecurity is a regional issue. Where we stop, another Feeding America food bank starts. There are six food banks in Missouri, seven in Illinois, and 198 in the Feeding America network. The good news is that there’s a food bank covering every county in the nation. The sad part is that we need a food bank covering every county in the nation.
People are going home from work tonight and, instead of asking, “What’s for dinner?” they’re opening their pantries and asking, “Do we have anything to have for dinner?”
If those questions are being asked in our region, we as leaders have a responsibility to figure out how to make sure they’re asked fewer and fewer times.
Technology and data have become increasingly important to the St. Louis Area Foodbank’s operations. Where are you seeing the biggest difference?
Technology has made a huge difference in helping us understand where our resources need to go. We can map our food pantries and overlay that information with bus routes, utility disconnections, population data, poverty statistics, and information from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
We need to understand how to get the right food to the right people, in the right place, at the right time. That doesn’t just happen because you put food in a truck and ring a bell. We must be intentional, respectful, and give our neighbors choices in the types of food they want.
We’ve also moved much of our information onto Power BI dashboards. I can tell you how many pounds of food went to a particular agency, how much grocery rescue food an agency picked up, and where our financial resources are going.
We want donors to know that more than 94 cents of every dollar go directly to programs — not just because we tell them, but because it’s audited and proven.
We’re also working to make it easier for people to find food. Through our technology partnerships, we’re mapping pantries and distributions so someone can enter a zip code and see what’s available without providing other identifying information.
Again, it’s about accessibility and dignity.
Looking ahead, what do you envision for the Foodbank over the next decade?
In a rainbows-and-roses world, we’d work ourselves out of a job because nobody would be food insecure. Wouldn’t that be lovely?
That’s probably a little unrealistic, but I see us continuing to evolve in how we do business and meet needs. We’ve seen things change dramatically, even since 2018. Nobody predicted COVID. Nobody predicted government shutdowns or tornadoes. Unexpected things will happen, and there will always be a need for an organization like the St. Louis Area Foodbank.
I see things happening very differently in the future. Probably fewer brick-and-mortar pantries and more delivery services. We want to make it easier for our neighbors to order food and have it delivered to their homes. That’s especially important for seniors, homebound people, and those with mobility or transportation challenges.
We’re also working with hospital systems on food-as-medicine initiatives and prescription produce boxes. We’ve evolved tremendously in the past eight and a half years, but we’re just scratching the surface.
You served in the U.S. Army for eight years before transitioning into nonprofit leadership. How has your military experience shaped the way you lead the St. Louis Area Foodbank?
It was an incredible way for me to understand how to respond to a crisis. Whenever something happens in our region, whether it’s flooding, tornadoes, or a global pandemic, I think my military experience has helped me develop a higher level of understanding and the ability to stay calm.
When COVID happened, the world shut down overnight. People came in asking, “What are we going to do?” I said, “Stop. We’re going to do two things: We’re going to keep the team safe, and we’re going to keep the doors open. That’s what we’re going to do today. And if we can do that today, we get to come back tomorrow.”
It’s about understanding what we can control and identifying the two or three most important priorities. If everything is a priority, nothing is.
That same approach helped us respond to the tornadoes. We looked at where the tornadoes were, identified our pantry partners in those areas, and reached out within an hour to find out how they were doing and what they needed. We’re not first responders, but we can support the people who are.
It’s about going slow and learning now so we can go fast during emergencies and always put people at the center of our decisions.
You’ve also spoken about encountering food insecurity among military families during your service. How did those experiences influence your commitment to serving veterans and military families?
I’ll never forget one of my young privates in 1995. Days before Christmas, he was facing having his electricity and water shut off and being kicked out of his house. I remember meeting with him and realizing he was so far in debt, but he didn’t understand how he had gotten there.
I also saw younger enlisted men and women with families who weren’t making enough money to make ends meet. They didn’t qualify for certain assistance programs because of the way their military benefits were calculated. It was heartbreaking to see men and women serving our country having to go to a food pantry.
In the military, people don’t necessarily want to talk about food insecurity because there’s this idea that everything is good. It’s about readiness. Everything is fine until it’s not.
The Foodbank is committed to serving active-duty military members and veterans. We work with local companies and organizations to support them, and we hold Veterans Day food distribution events to honor these men and women and make sure they have the support they need.
As a veteran, it’s very important to me personally, but it’s also very important to the St. Louis Area Foodbank that no one goes without.
What role can the St. Louis business community play in supporting the St. Louis Area Foodbank beyond simply writing a check?
The big things I always tell businesses we need are food, funds, and friends.
Have a food drive. Have a food-packing event. We can tell you what we need the most. We need funds to purchase food and support our programs, and we need businesses to partner with us and invest in our programs so they can share those outcomes. And we need friends: Volunteers are hugely important to what we do.
In-kind donations also make a big impact. We’re a warehouse and we need boxes and other supplies. If you’re a farmer, grower, or manufacturer, we need food donations.
We also need technology and skills-based volunteers. Maybe you’re retired and have experience in accounting, IT, or volunteer management. Come out and help us.
We have a small marketing team with limited resources to do everything internally, so sharing knowledge is incredibly important. When businesses share their expertise, leadership, and technology with us, our community gets to the next level.
What is the broader economic impact of hunger, and why should businesses see food security as an investment in the region’s future?
If children are struggling and aren’t food secure, they won’t attend school as consistently or perform as well. Their minds and bodies won’t develop the way they should. You might not see the impact today, but compound that over time, and you end up with generations of children who aren’t reaching their fullest potential.
They’re the future CEOs of every big business that calls St. Louis home. We’re depriving kids of an opportunity to excel, thrive, and reach their greatest potential.
There’s also an immediate economic impact. Families must make difficult choices between food, housing, transportation, utilities, and childcare. Sometimes a parent isn’t working because transportation and daycare costs are more than what they would earn. That affects businesses looking to hire talented, qualified people who are no longer in the workforce.
And when programs like SNAP are reduced, the effects reach beyond individual families. In some rural communities, local grocery stores may receive 30 to 70 percent of their revenue from SNAP benefits. If people lose those benefits, grocery stores may have to lay off employees or close their doors.
No one is going to show up as their best when they’re not at their best. When you’re constantly thinking about being hungry or wondering what you’ll feed your children that night, it’s hard to focus on anything else.
We also work with registered dietitians, farmers, and growers to get more produce, protein, and dairy into people’s diets. Access to healthy food matters. Not making nutritious food affordable and accessible to everyone in the St. Louis region has a real cost.
What’s the biggest thing people in the St. Louis region can do right now to make a measurable difference in hunger relief?
I think the first thing is simply becoming aware. Don’t say, “That doesn’t apply here,” or “That doesn’t apply to me.” Those are excuses for not getting involved.
Have honest, real conversations about where the opportunities are and what’s preventing us from making progress. Once we identify the barriers, we have to figure out who’s going to take them down.
We need to pull people together, focus on the outcome and those who are impacted by hunger, and make sure we’re not duplicating efforts. We have plenty of brilliant minds and plenty of resources here, but we need to allocate them appropriately.
I also encourage people to stay curious. Pick up the phone. Have a coffee meeting. It doesn’t mean you’re committing to anything. Just learn about what organizations are doing and where you might be able to help.
Find your passion. Maybe it’s food, animals, housing, youth education, or caring for older adults. Whatever it is, find an organization and give it an hour or two of your time.
We all say we’re busy, but maybe we could put down our phones for 30 minutes a day and use that time differently. That hour or two might change your life and somebody else’s.
