The Importance Of The Mapping Project For A Better Insight Into The Counties Services And Their Demographics

The way River City Food Bank works is that they open to the public from 11:30 am to 3:00 pm. They provide many services for single and multiple families. Anyone who lives in Sacramento and reports that they or their dependents are living at or below the federal poverty line are eligible to receive these benefits. This site relies on the help of volunteers from around the Sacramento area. The day I went to River City Food Bank, there were twenty volunteers on this site ready to help and assist. My role was

Around the globe there are many who are at a state of no access to food. Not only does this effect the homeless, but also those with a family and children. Because of their low income or environmental state and even poverty, not everyone has a fair chance of a proper nutrition. This is where the role of food banks comes into place as it limits these problems to these individuals. Through charitable events at school, I have participated in giving canned food items or food items that will not rot within a couple of years or months. Participating in these events not only gave me a ticket to partake in the well-being for others, but it also gave me a more understanding as to how many people are really impacted with hunger as well as other forms of their needs.

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

The primary effect of living in a food desert census tract is that residents tend to be vastly more food insecure than those who have easier access to grocery stores. Approximately 23 million Americans live in census tracts defined as food deserts. The United States Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as “a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life (USDA 2018).” Food desertification is a complex socioeconomic problem with no clear consensus regarding how to best tackle the several issues that may influence its existence. It can occur in both rural and urban settings, with each locale often facing its own logistical

Whitley, S. (2013). Changing Times in Rural America: Food Assistance and Food Insecurity in Food Deserts. Journal Of Family Social Work, 16(1), 36-52. doi:10.1080/10522158.2012.736080

Mornings without breakfast transition to nights without dinner, but the situation does not change for America's poor and needy. The face of food insecurity is often invisible. Behind lowered blinds and shut doors, poverty establishes itself in many styles and we attempt to defeat it in numerous ways. Food assistance programs are the primary tool the government uses to alleviate the hunger pangs and empty diets caused by nutrition insecurity. Increased government oversight is generally not helpful, but in the case of America's SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), such government management would probably do good. Right now, there is an array of problems facing

According to the survey conducted by the U.S conference of Mayors, 67% of adults requesting emergency food aids are people with jobs. Recently, American food banks are experiencing a “torrent of need which they cannot meet”. In Maine, Ms Ehrenreich needed immediate food aid or cash assistance as she was new to the place and most of

Low income communities are most likely to suffer from food deserts due to the lack of money being bought into the community to keep big markets around. As a result, residents may have to travel a longer distance to get to the nearest supermarket, which can be difficult when the person does not have reliable transportation. According to the USDA, it is estimated that about 2.3 million people in low income areas live more than one mile away from a supermarket or do not have their own vehicle (2). Since supermarkets can be further away most people may have to take several buses, taxis and/or trains just to get the nearest grocery store which can get expensive when the person is on a fixed income. In rural area, residents have little to no access to public transportation especially to supermarkets are a distance away.

The main reason why low-income areas are full of malnutrition and hungry people is because food companies have no reason to sell food there. As Erika Nicole Kendall, a former user of food stamps herself, states in her post on A Black Girl’s Guide to Weight Loss, “The reason that food deserts exist is because it is assumed that the people in those geographic locations cannot afford the products that a fresh food-selling store would provide”. However, food stamps and other programs can give companies incentives to sell food in these “food deserts” if the government subsidizes them. Through these programs, the government uses economic strategies to help the poor get the

Food insecurity is a term that was introduced by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA labels the insecurity based on the severity with four different groups. One group is the Low Food Security; which means low quality, desirability or variety but no or little reduction of food. Very Low Food Security is reduced food intake and multiple disruptions of eating patterns. The opposite spectrum is High Food Security. This is no food limitations or no issues accessing food. Marginal food security is sufficient supply of food with some concern of ability to supply. (USDA, https://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/food-nutrition-assistance/food-security-in-the-us/definitions-of-food-security.aspx).

In studies reviewed by James Levine, over 3,000 US counties were observed. He found that 43% of households that are living under the poverty line ($21,756) are living with food insecurity. In accordance to the 15.1% of Americans living in poverty, 14% of the counties reviewed have more than 1 in 5 individuals use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The service of the program in the counties correlates with the county-wide poverty rates (Levine 2667).

In order to further support low-income communities and improve this population’s health the federal government needs to not only continue with the supplemental food programs they’ve already put in place, but enhance them by considering the barriers and address them. The government can intervene by integrating other components to the programs that further support people and help eliminate the main barrier by providing them direct access to grocery stores and healthier options. In order for government resources to be more effective in areas where there are limited grocery store options in the community, the government could begin by providing transportation services in areas where grocery stores are limited or if any at all. Providing transportation to those who are receiving government resources like WIC and SNAP would allow families to exhaust

In 2013 almost 86% of households in america were food secure. This means that 14.3% of households in America were food insecure (meaning they were not able to provide food for themselves). 5.6% out of this 14.3% had extremely low food security. This means that these households had no money or resources available to acquire food. Although this amount of people being food insecure may seem high it has been slowly declining. In 2011, the amount of households that were food insecure was 14.9%. This decrease might seem very small, but in reality it means that thousands of households are now food secure.

Research conducted by IFFS and its partners indicates that within IFFS’s seven county service area (Wake, Durham, Orange, Chatham, Johnston, Nash, and Edgecombe), more than 275,000 people are food insecure at any given time and may not know where their next meal is coming from. Following the tone of their motto, “Give a man a fish. Teach a man to fish. Stock the pond for all,” IFFS served more than 38,000 people in 2015 with programs ranging from food distribution to cooking courses.

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)