The Need
Hunger is a dreadful reality for many families in New York
State: children are going to bed hungry or starting their
day without having eaten; working adults are going without
food in order to pay the rent and heating bills; and the unemployed,
the poor and near poor individuals and families are hungry
all too often.
The findings of the Nutrition Consortium’s Community
Childhood Hunger Identification Project (CCHIP) document this
reality in New York State in our 1995 publication, In the
Land of Plenty: Hunger in New York State. CCHIP showed
that for families with children with incomes at 185% of poverty,
20% are hungry and an additional 57% are at risk of hunger.
Furthermore, our conclusions are corroborated by recently
released poverty and hunger statistics.
Poverty is the root cause of hunger, and the poverty rate
in New York State is the 8th highest in the nation,
according to a U.S. Census Bureau’s report "Poverty
in the United States: 1998." While the nation as a whole
has seen a drop in the poverty rate from 13.3% in 1997 to
12.7% in 1998, the poverty rate in NYS has remained at 16.6%
for the last two years. Most striking, however, is the fact
that the poverty rate in New York State has increased by nearly
4% from 1990 to 1998, during a period of unequalled economic
growth.
Furthermore, the data in the latest Food Insecurity Study
by USDA documents that, during the period 1996-98, 10% of
households in New York State are hungry or at risk of hunger.
That’s as many as 1.8 million hungry New York State residents.
Only 16 other states had food insecurity and hunger levels
equal to or greater than New York.
Other recent studies that document the tremendous increase
in the use of food pantries and soup kitchens serve to emphasize
the problem of hunger. According to the U.S. Conference of
Mayors 1999 survey, 85% of the respondent cities reported
a rise in emergency food assistance demand over the last year.
It has also been documented that a large percentage of those
seeking emergency food assistance are children (40%) and the
elderly (10%). According to the NYC Coalition Against Hunger,
requests for emergency food in New York City grew by 28% from
January 1999 to January 2000. The emergency food providers
are unable to keep up with demand. More than 47,000 people
were turned away without assistance in NYC in January 2000
alone, and almost half were children.
The Response: The Nutrition Consortium’s Campaign
to End Hunger
The Nutrition Consortium believes that the crippling reality
of hunger in New York State is unacceptable, and that it is
reversible. We have established our Campaign to End Hunger
to fund our outreach, public education, research and public
policy work.
Through the Campaign, we work to improve and coordinate existing
governmental food assistance programs, as well as work to
establish needed programs throughout the state. We also work
with policy makers and administrators to ensure that an adequate
and integrated response to hunger is in place, and to ensure
that programs are operational consistent with their intent.
With your help, we will continue our work in support of the
School Breakfast Program, the Summer Food Program, CACFP,
WIC, emergency food programs and senior nutrition programs,
and of course, improving access to the Food Stamp Program.
See also the 2001/2001 State
Budget, Policy and Legistative Agenda.
The Nutrition Consortium is very pleased to acknowledge the
generous support of private foundations for our Campaign to
End Hunger:
MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger
The New York Foundation
The Robert Sterling Clark Foundation
Share Our Strength
And the many individuals who have made a financial contribution
to the Campaign to End Hunger.
We are very grateful for this support, which makes our public
policy, advocacy and education work possible, including, in
part, the publication and distribution of this newsletter!
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