New Data: 1 in 5 Americans Unable to Afford Enough Food For Their Families
Posted by Courtney Smith on Friday, March 4, 2011
The Food Research and Action Center released a report this week about the state of “food hardship” in the U.S. The latest numbers show that food hardship stood at 18% in 2010, meaning that nearly one in five Americans struggled to afford enough food for their families last year, despite the recession easing.
You can find out how many families are struggling where you live, and you may be surprised. Food Hardship in America – 2010 presents data on the extent of food hardship in every state, congressional district, and 100 of the country’s largest metro areas. In 21 states, at least one in five said there were times they did not have enough money to buy food that their family needed—and even in the state with the lowest rate (North Dakota), more than a tenth of respondents faced hunger.
At Share Our Strength, we hear stories of hardship and its effects all too often—from the teachers who see children arriving at school too hungry to learn, to our grantees working to connect children and families with programs that can provide the nutritious food they need.
The good news is that public and private stakeholders at the national, state and local level are coming together to tackle domestic hunger. At Share Our Strength, we’re working with governors, mayors, and public, corporate and nonprofit leaders to launch No Kid Hungry Campaigns aimed at ending childhood hunger. And these campaigns are having tangible results, like improvements in summer meals participation..
In a country of such plenty, it is unacceptable that a fifth of our residents are struggling to feed their families. And the millions of children in those families are the most vulnerable. We can end childhood hunger in this country with your help.
March 4, 2011 | 0 comment(s) | Tags: grantees, hunger, schools, state partnerships, statistics, summer meals, teachers
Post a comment
All fields are required (your e-mail address will not be displayed)