About 4,220 people in the Princeton area struggle to get enough food, food bank estimates show

Some 4,220 people in and around Princeton do not reliably have enough to eat, according to new North Texas Food Bank figures reported Thursday by The Farmersville Times.

That works out to 12.4% of residents in Princeton's ZIP-code area, based on the 2026 edition of Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap. Countywide, the food bank estimates about 149,550 Collin County residents, or 12.9%, face food insecurity, and it puts the county's yearly meal gap above 28 million meals.

Where the food goes

In the 12 months that ended June 30, the food bank's 2026 fiscal year, it sent 22,532 pounds of food to the Princeton area by way of nine active partners. That equals 18,777 meals.

Your Community Food Pantry handled the largest share: 14,264 pounds, or 11,887 meals.

Schools are part of the network too. Canup Early Childhood Center and three elementaries, Mary Mayfield, Green and Smith, take part in food bank programs. Over the year the food bank counted 6,877 meals served to Princeton-area kids through its children's programs.

Nearby towns show similar rates. The food bank estimates 1,330 people in Nevada (12.5%) and 680 in Lavon (9.7%) face food insecurity.

The regional picture

Across the food bank's 12-county service area, about 796,480 people experience food insecurity, including 291,310 children, and close to a quarter of the region's children are affected, the organization says. The food bank recently convened close to 20 mayors along with other local officials and partners to discuss the need and what changes to federal nutrition programs could mean.

One change is already in place. SNAP's yearly cost-of-living increase took effect Oct. 1, raising the maximum monthly benefit for one person from $298 to $306 and for a family of four from $994 to $1,023.

With the holidays approaching, the food bank and its partners are asking residents to support local pantries. People who need help applying for SNAP or with their benefits can call the food bank's benefits navigators, 214-269-0906, or visit ntfb.org/snap.

Sources

farmersvilletimes.com