Emergency Food Pantry Set Up at Closed Binghamton Supermarket

A crowd gathered outside a former Weis supermarket in Binghamton to obtain food assistance as disruptions grow due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.

The special walk-up distribution event Thursday morning on Conklin Avenue was organized by the Food Bank of the Southern Tier.

The agency said the emergency mobile food pantry was set up to provide immediate food assistance to individuals and families affected by delays in SNAP benefits and government pay.

People began showing up at the site on the city's South Side more than an hour before the food distribution was scheduled to begin. Participants were required to register for the mobile food pantry in advance.

Broome County Executive Jason Garnar said about half of the local residents who receive SNAP benefits work. He said they often are described as "the working poor." He said many of those who receive the assistance to cover the cost of food are children.

Garnar said there is a significant demand for food assistance in the county. He noted that all of the available slots to register for the Binghamton emergency food pantry event were filled within two hours.

The county executive said more than 200 people already were in line at the distribution site when he arrived.

WNBF NEWS VIDEO: A visit to the site of the closed Weis supermarket on Conklin Avenue in Binghamton on November 6, 2025.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or call (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.