LOS ANGELES — A bright smile and some fresh tomatoes greeted those who stopped Friday by a grocery distribution site in Lemiert Park. 

Founder and CEO Tyrone Nance of It’s Bigger Than Us says the nonprofit holds two distributions a week, feeding about 400 people, a number that has increased over the course of this year. 

According to an ongoing study by the USC Dornsife Center for Economic and Social Research, food insecurity is at its worst level in 10 years, affecting about 1 million households in LA County. That’s 30% of households in 2023 — a jump from 24% last year.

And it’s not just a problem in Los Angeles. The USDA tracks the cost of food monthly and the numbers are clear. An average family of four on a moderate-cost food plan spent about $1,200 on groceries in the month of October. That’s almost $300 more than October of last year. Annually, that family is spending an extra $3000 on groceries this year. That’s a problem year round, but Nance said it’s felt more around the holidays.

“Folks are having to bargain if they’re going to eat or they’re going to give toys and gifts to their kids and to their loved ones,” he said, “and we don’t want them to have to pick and choose.”