A week after the Food Research and Action Center, a Washington anti-hunger group, released a report detailing the breadth of food insecurity in the United States, on Monday President Obama requested $10 billion over 10 years to improve Child Nutrition Programs in his budget proposal.
The report, which is the most detailed and far-reaching of its kind, concluded that the food hardship rate, for American families in 2009 “hover[ed] between 17.9 and 18.8 percent.” Food hardship is defined by FRAC as “not hav[ing] enough money to buy food that [an individual] or [their] family needed.” While these numbers are down slightly from the 2008 levels, they still show that food insecurity is “a national problem in the sense that rates are high in virtually every state, Metropolitan Statistical Area, and Congressional District,” according to FRAC President Jim Weill. FRAC has attributed the slight decline to “falling food prices, rising enrollment for food stamps and an increase in the amount of the food stamp benefit.”
The President’s budget also included a request for an increase of $7.6 billion for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Indeed, a record number of people – one in eight – now receive SNAP benefits, and over 31 million children utilize the National School Lunch Program every day. Without these safety nets, the number of food insecure households would skyrocket even higher.
While the President’s budget requests funding increases for Child Nutrition programs, other financial safety net programs that may be subject to President Obama’s proposed spending freeze on discretionary domestic programs (Rabbi David Saperstein, released a statement last week expressing concern with proposal). With Child Nutrition Reauthorization coming up before Congress this spring, “Now is absolutely NOT the time to cut support for the next generation’s health,” as Debra Eschmeyer writes. She aptly points out that “we have a rare opportunity to actually improve how food for our youngest citizens is funded, sourced, defined, and prioritized.” One of the best ways for President Obama to work toward his intention to end childhood hunger by 2015, would be to heed the special opportunity (Child Nutrition Programs are reauthorized every five years) and push Congress to increase funding, access and participation in the National School Meal programs when this year. You can urge your representatives in Washington to increase access to healthy food here.