Insecurity In America

Food Stamp Challenge Introduction to Hunger Imagine your stomach growling, a feeling of emptiness, fatigue, and an inability to concentrate. Most people would associate these feelings with hunger and eat. Unfortunately, many Americans do not have the luxury of eating because of living in poverty. According to the Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the number of people living in poverty rose from 31.6 million in 2000 to 36.5 million in 2006. The number of people living in households facing food insecurity rose from 31 million in 1999 to 35.5 million in 2006. More than 12 million of the people living in food insecure households were children (Labue, 2009). Food America (2017) reports:

Schwartz-Nobel, Loretta. Growing Up Empty: The Hunger Epidemic in America. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers Inc. 2002 (248 pages) First, I would like to give my opinion of whether this book was worthwhile at the beginning of this book review. Because I believe this is one of the most moving books written

One of most common problems in the world is food insecurity. It is not only happening in the third world countries, but it is also happening in the richest country in world, the USA. Food insecurity occurs when a family does not have enough food for all family members. The USDA confirms that 12.7 percent of U.S households are suffering from food insecurity. Food insecurity can be of two kinds: low food insecurity and very low food insecurity. In low insecurity households, family members just eat enough calories for their body, but their food is not nutritious. Low food insecurity makes up 7.4 percent of 12.7 of food insecurity households in the U.S, (USDA). The other type is very low food insecurity. The family members do not have enough food at specific times in the year because they lack money. This type makes up 4.9 percent out of 12.7 percent in the food insecurity, (USDA). Food insecurity most often happens in the households with children, especially households with children headed by a single man or a single woman. The USDA estimates that households with children headed by single woman have 31.6 percent chance of experiencing low food insecurity, and households with children headed by a single man have 21.7 percent chance for low food insecurity. The South has highest rate of food insecurity with 13.5 percent. The rate of food insecurity in the Northeast (10.8 percent) is lower than Midwest (12.2 percent). The rate of food insecurity according to states in the three

TO: Mayor Bill de Blasio FROM: Bonnie Humpherys, SUBJECT: SNAP Program Reform DATE: October 6, 2017 The federal food stamp program (SNAP), makes up the largest portion of the budget for the US Department of Agriculture.1 In New York alone 15.3% of residents receive benefits from the SNAP program.2 The purpose of SNAP

In Sarah Whitley’s “Changing Times in Rural America: Food Assistance and Food Insecurity in Food Deserts” the causes and effects of food deserts in rural communities in the western United States in observed. Whitley states that, “Food insecurity and hunger are especially important to research in the rural setting because transportation issues and increasing food prices may affect rural food-insecure Americans significantly differently than their urban or suburban counterparts.” Rural America has been changing so drastically in recent years because its largest population is aging and retiring and the younger people that grew up in this rural setting are leaving to go to larger cities. With a declining population, rural areas are experiencing

Fortunately there are programs that assist families in crisis and can help to feed the children of the United States; however the number of hungry children is growing. Child hunger in the United States has been described as an increasingly complex problem and has been called the “silent epidemic.” (Goldstein, 2009)

So, why do fifteen million children in America face hunger every day? How does this happen? Many people are on food stamps, and they can be extremely helpful, but it is difficult to feed family with them. Food stamps provide only a dollar per person for each meal, according to the organization, Food is Power. More often than not, unhealthy, processed foods are a lot less expensive than nutritious, organic food, and because of this issue, many people on food stamps reach for less expensive junk food. Unquestionably, healthy foods can be very hard to find and expensive in places like food deserts. Food is Power found that thirty-three percent of Americans live in food deserts. Of course, public transportation helps families reach grocery stores, but it still can be a lengthy trip, and in rural and suburban areas, there can be little or no public transportation at all. These issues make it a struggle for parents to provide healthy food for their

1. Who is hungry or the food-insecure in America? According to the USDA's Economic Research Service, the food-insecure are those families in America that at times didn't know whether they had or could find enough food to meet their needs. This was due to the lack of money or other resources, such as government assistance or community food banks (USDA ERS - Food Security in the U.S.). In it's most recent study, the Economic Research Service found that as of 2013, 80.5 percent of families in the U.S. were food secure, leavinf over 49 million people food-insecure (USDA ERS - Food Security in the U.S.). Of that 49 million, nearly 9 million children lived in food-insecure households (USDA ERS - Food Security in the U.S.).

The food insecurity in Vermont is astonishing. It is even more sad knowing that it is still increasing as well. "The percentage of food insecure Vermont households increased from an average of 9.1% (22,000 households) from 1999 to 2001 to an average of 13.2% (34,000 households) from 2011 to 2013.†I knew there was an issue with food insecurity all around the world but I did not expect it to be this high in such a small state like, Vermont. The overall percentage of food insecurity throughout all fifty states is a whopping 12.7%. Although it did decrease from 14% in 2014, it is still above the pre-recession rates.

After reading the extensive “The New Face of Hunger” (Tracie McMillan), my eyes became more open to the overall issue of hunger, faced by many people today. In a few words, I was absolutely shocked by the true meaning and examples provided of what exactly food insecurity is. Honestly speaking,

Hungry Children in the World General Purpose: To persuade A. How many of you are worried about where your next meal will come from? Are you unsure of how you’re going to purchase next week’s groceries or what you will be feeding your children for dinner tonight? This probably isn’t something most

Food insecurity is one of the leading public health challenges in the United States today, since millions of people (children and adults) are food insecure because of insufficient money income and other socioeconomic and demographic factors. (Seligman, Kushel, & Laraia, 2010)

It is important to renew critical focus on the devastating impact of food insecurity and its vast spread in the United States in

http://map.feedingamerica.org/county/2014/overall . USDA defines food insecurity as a household-level economic and social condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food. While it may be the assumption that larger areas of food insecurity are in the more densely populated areas, you can see that in areas of Lumpkin County this not the case. In Union County it appears that food insecurity is not nearly as prevalent. A deeper look will show that considering more factors is necessary when determining need. Some of the counties GMFB services have large rural areas where transportation can be a barrier as well as limited access to food sources near them. Figure 1 below also indicates the locations of the agencies GMFB supports and gives us a clear picture of how well we are meeting the areas of need as well as any gaps.

Gallup The 2015 Statistical Analysis Poverty Level Data report shows in the United States, there was an increase in which families’ are able to provide food per person within their household. After the devastating financial and economic crisis in 2008, families have been in financial detriment for years trying to maintain consistency in providing food, support, and shelter. Not until the government 2015 report, there were clear evidence of a sufficient rise in food surplus in low income families since 2008. According to the governmental statistical report, 14% of households were suffering from food deficiency. In other words, 17.5 million households, approximate one out of every seven homes could not provide nourishment on a regular basis. This estimate is down from the last statistical data recorded in 2011 at 14.9%.