Food Insecurity In The Playground Of The Rockies

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By CFACT Policy Analyst Duggan Flanakin

The ski resort towns of Aspen and Vail, Colorado, are home to some of America’s wealthiest people. The current average home price in Vail is about $1,750,000, but that pales in comparison with the $3.4 million average home value in Aspen, home to (Red) Mountain, which features properties in the $49 million range.

The ski lodges and high-end restaurants that bring in even more of the world’s wealthiest people, however, are also the home of picturesque towns that are plagued with hidden hardships – notably, food insecurity.

In Eagle County, home to Vail, the Colorado Center on Law and Policy estimates that a household with just one adult and one preschooler needs an income of $42.46 per hour, 491% of the federal poverty guidelines for a family of two.

According to Grace Anshutz, director of development and marketing at the Eagle Valley Community Foundation, limited year-round employment, high living costs, and scarce grocery options mean that many county residents struggle to put healthy meals on the table even as their neighbors can dine on foie gras and caviar.

Anshutz says her organization, and the umbrella Food Bank of the Rockies (which serves 32 counties in Colorado), provide much-needed assistance to individuals who live and work in the playground of the rich and famous. But unlike the local billionaires, they often need to work multiple jobs to sustain their role in serving the tourism-driven local economy.

These hardy souls are faced daily with the exorbitant cost of housing, scarcity of affordable childcare, escalating expenses associated with sustenance and healthcare, and a glaring absence of accessible public transportation and other amenities readily available in less remote areas.

Moreover, the winter skiing season, enjoyed by the wealthy residents and tourists, provides even greater challenges for year-round residents not born with silver spoons.

Eagle County is home to about 55,000 people, yet a growing group of seniors, young professionals, and other volunteers contribute a collective 10,000-plus hours a year to sorting, packing, and distributing food to their neighbors – more than 50,000 pounds per month of fresh, nutritious food that might otherwise end up in landfills.

Anshutz says that many of these volunteers were once recipients of food assistance.

The Eagle Valley Community Market works with grocery stores, restaurants, and farms to recover food. Nationwide, she says, up to 40% of all food produced in the United States goes to waste despite the efforts of food banks and others to recycle food to the needy. She adds that supporting these local food banks, participating in community-driven hunger relief efforts, and advocating for policies that improve access to food can improve the quality of life for ordinary people – even those who struggle in the shadow of opulence.

For Anshutz, the Eagle Valley Community Foundation’s work is not just about providing meals to the hungry. Helping these people is about restoring dignity and fostering connections that bring isolated people together into a supportive community. Each week, people come together over food but share stories and provide mutual support.

For some, the community market is their only source of fresh produce. For others, it is a place to find purpose in the midst of hardship.

It is quite likely that many of the tourists, and even some of the wealthiest residents, of Eagle County and neighboring Pitkin County (home to Aspen) remain unaware of just how hard life is for the people they rely upon to keep them supplied with their daily comforts; nor are many aware that working at a local food bank requires training to ensure that people’s privacy is not invaded as they come to receive help with survival.

Ashley Newell, director of programs at Food Bank of the Rockies, says there is a delicate balance between respecting neighbors’ privacy and gathering the information necessary to make data-driven decisions about managing the flow of food into and out of local facilities.

The 32-county organization, for example, has developed “best practices for inclusive pantries” through its ‘Building Belonging Program’, one that assists hunger relief partners in understanding the barriers to access that needy neighbors, particularly migrants, may experience. Training is also offered in de-escalation and conflict management in recognition that some of the needy live high-stress lives and may be nervous about asking for help.

Food Bank of the Rockies has also created a “community choice produce” program in response to many “hunger relief partners” who wish to purchase additional produce – from apples and avocados to tomatoes and broccoli — at a low price available because the food bank buys in bulk. Other produce, of course, remains free of charge on the food bank’s “partner express.”

Food Bank of the Rockies in 2024 distributed 93 million pounds of food, an average of 212,400 meals each day, a monumental challenge given that it experienced a 13% increase over 2023 in the number of people its partners served. Inflation and the end of COVID-era federal support measures were in part responsible for the increased traffic.

In 2024, the food bank had total revenues of $156 million. Just a couple years earlier, the food bank had a total income of $150 million of which less than $8 million went for fundraising and administrative expenses.

This excellent record of public service led the William G. McGowan Charitable Fund, which had previously provided assistance in the area, to donate another $125,000 each to the Food Bank of the Rockies and the Eagle Valley Community Foundation.

It is through the adamant work of willing organizations such as the McGowan Fund, and partners on the ground willing to step up to feed the needy that the model established in Colorado, on the periphery of the Aspen glow, can serve as one highly replicable across the nation.