Food Insecurity in Rural Areas

Three vulnerable populations

Who does it affect Cont.. Pregnant women who are food secure are 3 times as likely to develop gestational diabetes as their food secure counterparts. Children born in to households with food insecurity shows sustained disadvantages – Effects on cognition, academic performance, long term nutrition status psychosocial development.

Who does it affect Cont.. Older person with food insecurity are at higher nutritional risk – are more likely to forgo purchasing prescribe medications and are more than twice as likely to report inferior health status.

Meal patterns Older rural residents – 15% consumed two meals per day – 6% less than two daily meals – 20% did not eat breakfast meal every day – 8% never ate breakfast – Nutritional problems—lead to health problems

Process of food choice Adequacy of personal and community resources Level of food security of food sufficiency Health factors financial demands for limited resources Functional impairments Social and geographic isolation Household environment Frequency of grocery shopping Knowledge of healthful foods Oral problems Depression

Food Desert An area where all residents have limited access to supermarkets and supercenters where a variety of groceries and produce can be found. Low access – More than half the population has limited access to supermarkets – Being over 10 miles from the nearest supermarket

Fresh Moves in Chicago Bring fresh produce to low income neighborhoods Residents on Chicago’s South and West sides—travel twice as far to access grocery stores Have fast food restaurants and convenience stores

The Foodbank’s system of mobile food pantries, called the Foodmobile Program, was launched in Foodmobiles are designed to increase access to nutritionally-dense foods for residents of rural and under-resourced communities. Foodmobiles are hosted by community organizations or emergency food providers in communities across the Foodbank’s service area, and are often financially sponsored by service organizations, businesses, and other community groups. Each Foodmobile leaves the Foodbank stocked with approximately $8,000 – $14,000 worth of food and grocery products – fresh vegetables, bread, canned fruits, boxed meals, and more – to be set up for on-site distribution at the hosting community location. Volunteers are a crucial part of the Foodmobile program – they help set up and distribute food to the 150 families served at each distribution. Costs $ to sponsor Eastern Illinois Food Bank—Foodmobile Program

* “Very rural, you must drive +30 miles to obtain quality vegetables and fruit.” * “I have to get out of Johnson County because of the price of things and the quality of fresh produce.” * “There is only one grocery store in this area and there is a need for another grocery store or source for obtaining food.” * “As of now, I get most of my groceries at stores miles away. As long as I am able to drive, I have no problem.”

*19% of respondents experienced some sort of trouble obtaining food based on USDA food security measures. *47% of respondents experiencing problems with food security did not live in poverty. *61% of respondents having problems with food security and living in poverty did not use any assistance from a food pantry or the Link Card Program. *Logistic regression confirms that poverty status is significant (P<.05 and R2=.245l). *Elderly status is inversely related to food insecurity status (B=-2.26).

Food insecurity – At times during the year, uncertain of having or unable to acquire enough food to meet the needs of all their members because they had insufficient money or other resources – Low food security Households obtained enough food to avoid substantially disrupting their eating patterns or reducing food intake by using a variety of coping strategies—eating less varied diets, participating in SNAP or getting food from a food pantry – Very low food security Normal eating patterns of one or more houshold members were disrupted and food intake was reduced at t ime during th eyear – insufficient money or other resources for food

“Income-to-poverty ratios represent the ratio of family or unrelated individual income to their appropriate poverty threshold. Ratios below 1.00 indicate that the income for the respective family or unrelated individual is below the official definition of poverty, while a ratio of 1.00 or greater indicates income above the poverty level. A ratio of 1.25, for example, indicates that income was 125 percent above the appropriate poverty threshold” (U.S. Census Bureau, 2004).

Illinois SNAP program Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Between —Illinois grew 32% $2.8 B a year –federal money Question of fraud in the system

House hold Size Gross Monthly Income Limit $1,174$1,579$1,984$2,389$2,794$3,200$3,605$4,010$4,416$4,822 Under Age 60 Non-Disabled Households SNAP eligible For households with more than 10 persons, add $406 for each additional person. Minimum wage IL $8.25 annual $17,160 monthly $1430

National School Lunch Program Federally assisted meal program 101,000 public and non-profit private schools Administered by State education agencies Cash subsidies and donated commodities from USDA for each meal they serve Nutritional requirements – No more than 30% of calories from fat – Less than 10% from saturated fat – Provide 1/3 of RDA of protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, calcium and calories

Lunch program Incomes at or below 130% of poverty level eligible (July 2010 family of four $28,665) % ($40,793) --reduced priced meals – Charge no more than 40 cents Cost FY $9.8 B Also School breakfast program Similar administration

States and DC Food stamps: Highest percent of households enrolled? National school lunch: highest number of people enrolled?

Disappearing rural grocery store Iowa – 1400 stores in 1995 to 700 in 2005 – Wal-Mart and Target increased by 175% – In rural Iowa—435 of grocery stores in towns with populations less than 1000 have closed Kansas – 82 grocery stores in communities with fewer than 2,500 people closed since 2007 – One in five rural grocery stores has gone out of business since 2006

Why Need 3,252 population to maintain a grocery store Out-commuting in towns of 2,500 increased by 72% Aging ownership—young people not take over

Implication to community Close store—place community on a path for further depopulation and economic decline New residents unlikely to want to live in a community without a grocery Lack of resources and reliable transportation— raises the specter of hunger and unhealthy eating in communities without a local grocery store – Rural residents over 70 more reliant on local grocery

Issues and challenges Competition with large chain grocery stores High operating costs Availability of satisfactory labor Narrow profit margins Taxes Government regulations Lack of community support Low sales volume