A Pittsburgh group could be coming to the rescue for Butler County by expanding its network of food distribution to help those who are considered “food insecure.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as a lack of consistent access to enough food to remain active and healthy.

A 2019 study by national hunger-relief organization Feeding America found that one in eight people in Pennsylvania face food insecurity, whereas Butler County had a lower rate of one out of 10 people. However, the county has a rate of one in six children who are food insecure.

So, it was great to hear this week that Pittsburgh-based 412 Food Rescue — which halts food from heading to landfill, instead giving it to those who are food insecure — is aiming to expand its network to incorporate Butler County and other surrounding counties.

Under the program, volunteers pick up food from grocery stores, fast-food restaurants and other businesses and drop them off directly at a county food bank or pantry.

This would be great news for Butler County, which has seen its recent share of food security issues.

For the past two years, the county has become more of a food desert following the closure of five major grocery stores, making it difficult for many seniors to purchase groceries locally. And while the Butler County Food Bank’s manager recently noted that new State Food Purchase Program funding has led to the food bank receiving more food than ever, the caveat was that the food bank’s warehouse didn’t have enough volunteers to handle the increase.

Mel Cronin, 412 Food Rescue’s regional expansion manager, said key components that would need to be addressed once the organization expands into Butler county would be donors to give the food, partners to receive it and volunteers to deliver it.

Even if 412 runs into the same problem as the county food bank regarding volunteers — and we hope it doesn’t — the group’s expansion into the county at least provides another resource for those suffering from food insecurity.

We hope 412’s new Butler County initiative is a success. Cronin said that building partnerships with county donors, volunteers and organizations through word of mouth would likely be the key to that success.

Butler County residents interested in volunteering should keep this group in mind once it has a presence in the county.