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| Rotary International District #6060 |
| Rotary Meeting Make - up #17 |
Hidden hunger
by Annemarie Mannion
The Rotarian -- April 2010
Illustration by Dave Cutler. A s the United States emerges from its deep recession, one consequence that’s acutely felt, if little seen, is hunger. The
number of Americans who don’t have enough to eat has reached 49.1 million, including nearly one child in four – the highest figures since the government
started keeping track in 1995.
James Grandon sees the effect of hunger on students’ educational development and their ability to succeed academically. Grandon is the principal of
Boyd Elementary School in Springfield, Mo., a city where half of the 24,000 public school students take part in the National School Lunch Program. “It’s
more than just physiological,” he says. “It’s psychological. I’ve seen children who hoard food, gorge, or hide food. And it’s not always the skinniest kid in
class who isn’t getting nutritious meals.”
With a national unemployment rate hovering around 10 percent, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported in 2009 that 17 million households,
or 14.6 percent, were “food insecure” in 2008, an increase from 13 million households, or 11.1 percent, in 2007. Food insecurity, according to the USDA,
is a limited or uncertain access to adequate food and is determined based on answers to 18 questions about eating and changes in diet patterns. The
report also found that one-third of food-insecure households – about 6.7 million, up from 4.7 million in 2007 – had very low food security, with
characteristics such as cutting the size of or skipping meals, being worried that food would run out, not eating when hungry, and going entire days without
eating.
“Food insecurity is progressive,” says Anne Hoisington, a dietitian and member of the Oregon State University Extension faculty. “[It starts with] families
trying to stretch their food dollars. They purchase less, or they water down the milk, or they stop buying fresh fruits and vegetables. They may be getting
enough calories, but they aren’t quality calories.”
Hunger in the United States is not on the scale seen in some developing countries, but the problem is serious enough to pose long-term consequences for
the health and well-being of children in particular. “The issue of food insecurity and hunger is a health issue,” says Mark Rank, professor of social work at
Washington University in St. Louis. “We know that children who face hunger have other issues, such as low birth weight, failure to thrive, and dental and
mental health issues.”
A study he conducted found that 49 percent of all children in the United States will live in a household that uses food stamps by the time they are 20. Rank
says the findings surprised even poverty experts. “People say, ‘How can this be? How can we have this really high number?’ But we looked at a long
period – 30 years. So you have the potential of a parent losing a job, or a divorce and a family breaking up. And these things can throw children into
poverty.”
Another sign that the U.S. hunger problem is worsening is the growing number of people using food stamps. In September, a record 37 million Americans
received aid from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, an increase of 40 percent over 2007. In that period, every state reported a rise in
demand.
"We're seeing former donors showing up in food lines. It's devastating for them."“People used to think, ‘I’ll never have to use food stamps. That’s someone
else,’” says Rank. “But now we need to think of poverty as an issue of ‘us.’ So many people are struggling, and it’s not through any fault of their own.” He
adds that hunger is a complex problem: “We can help people individually, but we need to think about macroeconomic issues as well. These are policy and
program issues such as universal health care or creating jobs that pay a living wage.”
In Seattle, Rotary First Harvest, a program of Rotary District 5030, is doing its part to bring fruits and vegetables to people in need. “We get millions of
pounds of produce to food banks in Washington State and beyond,” says David Bobanick, the program’s executive director and a member of the Rotary
Club of Mercer Island. “The focus is on fresh produce because that’s what is needed most in food banks.”
The project collects food from farms and packing houses that might not look perfect but is perfectly good. Each year, 1.4 million people receive food
through the program, and Bobanick estimates that 61 percent of clients are children or senior citizens. He says he has seen the problem of hunger grow:
“It certainly has gotten worse. In a lot of rural areas, there is high unemployment. In urban areas, there is a high cost of living. We’re seeing people
working part-time jobs. We’re also seeing former donors showing up in food lines. It’s devastating for them.”
In Springfield, Mo., five Rotary clubs and a Rotaract club have worked together to set up two mobile food pantries. “This is a way to get food to people in
rural areas,” says Anne Brown, past president of the Rotary Club of Springfield Southeast. “This way, they don’t have to drive 200 miles round trip.”
Grandon is grateful for the Rotarians’ work. “This is one area where the community has tried to take hold of the problem and said, ‘We can beat this. We
can conquer this. There is no reason for a child to go hungry.’”
Bobanick agrees. “Imagine being a parent and not knowing how you’re going to feed your children tonight,” he says. “We don’t call it food insecurity. We
call it hunger, and that’s why our work is critical.”
by Annemarie Mannion
The Rotarian -- April 2010
Illustration by Dave Cutler. A s the United States emerges from its deep recession, one consequence that’s acutely felt, if little seen, is hunger. The
number of Americans who don’t have enough to eat has reached 49.1 million, including nearly one child in four – the highest figures since the government
started keeping track in 1995.
James Grandon sees the effect of hunger on students’ educational development and their ability to succeed academically. Grandon is the principal of
Boyd Elementary School in Springfield, Mo., a city where half of the 24,000 public school students take part in the National School Lunch Program. “It’s
more than just physiological,” he says. “It’s psychological. I’ve seen children who hoard food, gorge, or hide food. And it’s not always the skinniest kid in
class who isn’t getting nutritious meals.”
With a national unemployment rate hovering around 10 percent, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported in 2009 that 17 million households,
or 14.6 percent, were “food insecure” in 2008, an increase from 13 million households, or 11.1 percent, in 2007. Food insecurity, according to the USDA,
is a limited or uncertain access to adequate food and is determined based on answers to 18 questions about eating and changes in diet patterns. The
report also found that one-third of food-insecure households – about 6.7 million, up from 4.7 million in 2007 – had very low food security, with
characteristics such as cutting the size of or skipping meals, being worried that food would run out, not eating when hungry, and going entire days without
eating.
“Food insecurity is progressive,” says Anne Hoisington, a dietitian and member of the Oregon State University Extension faculty. “[It starts with] families
trying to stretch their food dollars. They purchase less, or they water down the milk, or they stop buying fresh fruits and vegetables. They may be getting
enough calories, but they aren’t quality calories.”
Hunger in the United States is not on the scale seen in some developing countries, but the problem is serious enough to pose long-term consequences for
the health and well-being of children in particular. “The issue of food insecurity and hunger is a health issue,” says Mark Rank, professor of social work at
Washington University in St. Louis. “We know that children who face hunger have other issues, such as low birth weight, failure to thrive, and dental and
mental health issues.”
A study he conducted found that 49 percent of all children in the United States will live in a household that uses food stamps by the time they are 20. Rank
says the findings surprised even poverty experts. “People say, ‘How can this be? How can we have this really high number?’ But we looked at a long
period – 30 years. So you have the potential of a parent losing a job, or a divorce and a family breaking up. And these things can throw children into
poverty.”
Another sign that the U.S. hunger problem is worsening is the growing number of people using food stamps. In September, a record 37 million Americans
received aid from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, an increase of 40 percent over 2007. In that period, every state reported a rise in
demand.
"We're seeing former donors showing up in food lines. It's devastating for them."“People used to think, ‘I’ll never have to use food stamps. That’s someone
else,’” says Rank. “But now we need to think of poverty as an issue of ‘us.’ So many people are struggling, and it’s not through any fault of their own.” He
adds that hunger is a complex problem: “We can help people individually, but we need to think about macroeconomic issues as well. These are policy and
program issues such as universal health care or creating jobs that pay a living wage.”
In Seattle, Rotary First Harvest, a program of Rotary District 5030, is doing its part to bring fruits and vegetables to people in need. “We get millions of
pounds of produce to food banks in Washington State and beyond,” says David Bobanick, the program’s executive director and a member of the Rotary
Club of Mercer Island. “The focus is on fresh produce because that’s what is needed most in food banks.”
The project collects food from farms and packing houses that might not look perfect but is perfectly good. Each year, 1.4 million people receive food
through the program, and Bobanick estimates that 61 percent of clients are children or senior citizens. He says he has seen the problem of hunger grow:
“It certainly has gotten worse. In a lot of rural areas, there is high unemployment. In urban areas, there is a high cost of living. We’re seeing people
working part-time jobs. We’re also seeing former donors showing up in food lines. It’s devastating for them.”
In Springfield, Mo., five Rotary clubs and a Rotaract club have worked together to set up two mobile food pantries. “This is a way to get food to people in
rural areas,” says Anne Brown, past president of the Rotary Club of Springfield Southeast. “This way, they don’t have to drive 200 miles round trip.”
Grandon is grateful for the Rotarians’ work. “This is one area where the community has tried to take hold of the problem and said, ‘We can beat this. We
can conquer this. There is no reason for a child to go hungry.’”
Bobanick agrees. “Imagine being a parent and not knowing how you’re going to feed your children tonight,” he says. “We don’t call it food insecurity. We
call it hunger, and that’s why our work is critical.”
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