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Assignment 2. 2 The Public postulate to Know 49 Million People atomic tally 18 Experiencing crave in America Lisa Jenkins Strayer University ENG cxv Amy Sloan The economic conditions surrounding our food pantries today be that the demand from patrons experiencing food insecurity has risen dramatic ally, temporary hookup donations from outside sources are lessening. Other factors include the increasingly higher(prenominal) cost of fuel and food, a intensify in desire for fresh foods versus batchned, the ability to store these types of foods and the willingness for enough volunteers to lend a hand. regimen pantries depend on a large amount of donations from large food chains and manufacturers. These types of donations are decreasing due to unseasoned technologies in the industry that function optimize productions, therefore lessening the amount of product that is overproduced. According to nutrition America, hurt in America exists for nearly 49 million the great unwashed. That is one in six of the U. S. commonwealth including more than one in five children. (http//feedingamerica. org 2012) The husbandry reports that 1 in 4 Americans feeler programs that go out food tending through the federal government. (www. USDA. ov 2012 p. 1)The unemployment set for 2011 was 8. 9%, a small decrease from antecedent years. (www. USDA. gov 2012 p. 5) It appears that the economy of America is not improving. diet assistance is no longer only for the family lineless and un busy. A majority of patrons receiving food assistance from food pantries report that at least one adult is employed in the household. Food insecurity does not only exist in the suburbs anymore. Growing populations of those in claim of food assistance personify in rural areas and do not always founder doorway to food pantries. Food insecurity is growing expeditiously in the U. S. nd currently exists in either county in America. more women, children and elderly are experiencing food insecurity than ever before. The patrons of food pantries are no longer visiting only in emergency situations. The trend now is for those patrons to use food pantries to gear their food sources on a regular basis. The special needs of those served at food pantries include the need and desire for fresh fruits, veget fittings, dairy and proteins to ensure proper nutritional needs are cosmos met. Reports aim that children and adults that are not eating properly will suffer physically and mentally in regards to their health.This is specially important with children who are still developing. Children that are food insecure will most likely not do strong academically have poorer test scores, experience depression and behavioral problems in school. Women that are not receiving proper nutrition during pregnancy may experience complications during child birth and could strive birth to low birth weight babies. Adults need access to nutritional foods so that they can view as a healthy lifestyle and try to keep their self-esteem during this difficult time.The elderly may have food restrictions due to current medications that are taken for health primings or might be handicap and need assistance getting food delivered or prepared. The importance of portion those in need of receiving access to nutritional foods is of the utmost importance to the future of our nation. Some of the programs provided by Feeding America for Children are The Kids Cafe, tush Pack Program, Summer Food Program, and The School Pantry Program. Essentially the purpose of each of these programs is to provide wholesome meals for children in need.The Kids Cafe provides meals and snacks at after school programs and churches. The Back Pack Program sends nutritious foods and snacks home with school children to provide food they might not have otherwise received over the calendar week end. The Summer Food Program provides meals during the summer at safe and easy to access locations. Several pr ograms are also for sale for pregnant women and the elderly. The National Produce Program has partnerships with growers to provide bulk sources of fresh foods available for distribution to Feeding America food banks.This includes special packing to insure freshness. More nutritious foods are being made available to the food insecure through the national Produce Program than ever before. Contact your local food bank to find out which services are offered or how to help. The benefits of all the programs provided by Feeding America are insurmountable. Providing fresh, wholesome nutritional foods to men, women and children that might otherwise do without helps those individuals live healthier more productive lives.Helping others with food insecurity will hopefully help those individuals eventually be able to help themselves and to turn things around so that one day they will be able to provide for themselves. The sense of urgency of the situation needs to be spread to individuals, corp orations, local governments and politicians, as well as federal government in hopes that eitherones awareness will encourage people to take action to help end hunger in the richest country in the world. (See figure 2. ) The importance of helping those in need of receiving access to nutritional foods is of the utmost importance to our nation.The number of those in need of assistance has more than tripled since the beginning of the most recent economic downturn. Costs of foods and gasoline are not stabilizing. More and more people are losing their jobs due to economic downturn and/or American jobs are being eliminated by U. S. corporations and then those same jobs are moved to other countries where corporations can pay lower fee and benefits to the people of those countries. These actions by large corporations and the government are not helping to turn the economy around. These actions are not helping to put food in the hands of Americans that are in need.No longer should those indi viduals that can help sit back and do nothing. There is no reason why the richest country in the world should have over 15% of its population experiencing hunger and food insecurity. There is no reason why almost 17 million American children should not have nutritional meals available to them every day. Our government, corporations and individuals are needed to help make a difference. After all it is our responsibility to help others in need. References Feeding America (2012) Hunger in America Retrieved from Feeding America website http//feedingamerica. rg/hunger-in-america. aspx Feeding America (2012) Hunger in America Hunger and Poverty Statistics. Retrieved from Feeding America website http//feedingamerica. org/hunger-in-america/hunger-facts/hunger-and-poverty-statistics. aspx (Figure 1) http//feedingamerica. org/get-involved. aspx (Figure 2) USDA Economic Research aid U. S. Department of Agriculture Economic Information Bulletin No. 93 March 2012 retrieved from USDA website htt p//www. ers. usda. gov/media/376910/eib93_1_. pdf (p. 1) USDA Economic Research Service U. S. Department of Agriculture Economic Information Bulletin No. 3 March 2012 retrieved from USDA website http//www. ers. usda. gov/media/376910/eib93_1_. pdf (p. 5) Hunger & Poverty Statistics Although related, food insecurity and poverty are not the same. Unemployment kinda than poverty is a stronger predictor of food insecurity. Povertyi * In 2010, 46. 2 million people (15. 1 percent) were in poverty. * In 2010, 9. 2 million (11. 7 percent) families were in poverty. * In 2010, 26. 3 million (13. 7 percent) of people ages 18-64 were in poverty. * In 2010, 16. 4 million (22. 0 percent) children under the age of 18 were in poverty. In 2010, 3. 5 million (9. 0 percent) seniors 65 and older were in poverty. * The overall Poverty Rate fit to the Supplemental Poverty Measure is 16. 0%, as compared with the official poverty rate of 15. 1%. ii * Under the Supplemental Poverty Measure, there are 49. 1 million people living in poverty, 2. 5 million more than are represented by the official poverty measure (46. 2 million). iii Food Insecurity and Very Low Food Securityiv * In 2010, 48. 8 million Americans lived in food insecure households, 32. 6 million adults and 16. 2 million children. In 2010, 14. 5 percent of households (17. 2 million households) were food insecure. * In 2010, 5. 4 percent of households (6. 4 million households) experienced very low food security. * In 2010, households with children reported food insecurity at a significantly higher rate than those without children, 20. 2 percent compared to 11. 7 percent. * In 2010, households that had higher rates of food insecurity than the national intermediate included households with children (20. 2 percent), especially households with children headed by single women (35. 1 percent) or single men (25. percent), grim non-Hispanic households (25. 1 percent) and Hispanic households (26. 2 percent). * In 2009, 8. 0 percen t of seniors living alone (925,000 households) were food insecure. * Food insecurity exists in every county in America, ranging from a low of 5 percent in Steele County, ND to a high of 38 percent in Wilcox County, AL. v Nine states exhibited statistically significant higher household food insecurity rates than the U. S. national average 2008-2010iv United States 14. 6% manuscript 19. 4% Texas 18. 8% Arkansas 18. 6% Alabama 17. 3% Georgia 16. 9% Ohio 16. 4%Florida 16. 1% California 15. 9% North Carolina 15. 7% Use of Emergency Food Assistance and Federal Food Assistance Programsvi * In 2010, 4. 8 percent of all U. S. households (5. 6 million households) accessed emergency food from a food pantry one or more times. 2 * In 2010, 59. 2 percent of food-insecure households participated in at least one of the three major Federal food assistance programs Supplemental fodder Assistance Program (formerly Food Stamp Program), The National School Lunch Program, and the Special Supplemental living Program for Women, Infants, and Children. Feeding America provides emergency food assistance to an estimated 37 million low-income people annually, a 46 percent increase from 25 million since Hunger in America 2010. * Among members of Feeding America, 74 percent of pantries, 65 percent of kitchens, and 54 percent of shelters reported that there had been an increase since 2006 in the number of clients who come to their emergency food program sites. i U. S. Census Bureau. Carmen DeNavas-Walt, B. Proctor, C. Lee. Income, Poverty, and Heath Insurance Coverage in the United States 2010.September 2011. ii The Research Supplemental Poverty Measure 2010. (2011). U. S. Census Bureau. iii Ibid. iv USDA. Coleman-Jensen, A. , Nord, M. , Andrews, M. , & Carlson, S. Household Food Security in the United States in 2010. v Feeding America. Gundersen, G. , Waxman, E. , Engelhard, E. , Del Vecchio, T. , Satoh, A. , & Lopez-Betanzos, A. Map the repast Gap 2012. vi Rhoda Cohen, J. , Mabli, F. , Potter, Z. , Zhao. Mathematica Policy Research, Feeding America. Hunger in America 2010. i U. S. Department of attention. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 010 Annual Average Unemployment Rates. Figure 1. Feeding America 2012 Hunger in America Hunger Facts Hunger and Poverty Statistics Retrieved from Feeding America website http//feedingamerica. org/hunger-in-america/hunger-facts/hunger-and-poverty-statistics. aspx Get Involved With nearly 49 million Americans struggling with hunger, it is overtaking to take efforts from many people to help alleviate this issue. There are many ways to help in the cause. Figure 2. Feeding America 2012 Retrieved from Feeding America website http//feedingamerica. org/get-involved. aspx