Hunger in America

In 2009, the Arkansas Foodbank took part in a landmark Feeding America hunger study. Foodbank staff members conducted face-to-face interviews with 445 people seeking emergency food at food pantries, soup kitchens and other emergency feeding programs, as well as interviews with 239 agencies that provide food assistance. Here are the key results from the study.

Key Findings of the Arkansas Hunger in America 2010 Report
•Through its network of 400 member food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters and other agencies in 33 counties in central and southern Arkansas, the Arkansas Foodbank serves 166,200 different individuals every year - or 23,000 Arkansans per week
•The number of Arkansans served each year the Foodbank and its agencies has increased 11% since Hunger in America 2006
•35% of the members of households served by the Arkansas Foodbank are children under 18 years old
•8% of the members of households served are elderly
•27% of the households served include one or more working adults, an increase from 23% in 2006
•78% of those served live on incomes below the Federal Poverty Level
•52% of clients served by the Arkansas Foodbank report having to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities or heating fuel
•39% had to choose between paying for food and paying their rent or mortgage
•21% of clients served report that that they or someone in their household do not have access to health insurance.
•60% of clients report that they or someone in their household have an unpaid medical or hospital bills.
•27% of seniors served by the Arkansas Foodbank face very low food security - or hunger.
•41% of client households served by the Arkansas Foodbank receive SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps) benefits
 

The Foodbank Is "The Single Most Important Source of Food for Agencies With Emergency Food Providers"

•According to responses from its agencies, the Arkansas Foodbank is the single most important source of food for agencies with emergency food providers, accounting for 78% of the food distributed by pantries, an increase of 6% from the Hunger in America 2006 report.
•The local results of Hunger in America 2010 reveal that volunteers are the backbone of our network. Many programs rely entirely on volunteers; 80% of food pantries and 34% of soup kitchens have no paid staff at all.
•In 2009, the Arkansas Foodbank distributed 11.6 million pounds to the member agencies featured in Hunger in America 2010, an increase of 26% over 2008. Additionally, the Foodbank distributed 2.6 million pounds to the state's other five Feeding America food banks and 1.2 million pounds of food to its Redistribution Organizations.
•The Arkansas Foodbank is the largest food bank in the state, and is able to touch the lives of Arkansans statewide through its member agencies and Redistribution Organizations in central and southern Arkansas, and by serving as a "mixing center" for the state's other five food banks - ensuring that these food banks receive a nutritious and diverse mix of product
National Findings of Hunger in America 2010
•37 million people nationwide (14.5 million households), including 13.9 million children, receive emergency food each year through a national network of food banks and the agencies they serve
•1 in 8 Americans receives emergency food assistance
•Hunger in America 2010 is the first research study to capture the significant connection between the recent economic downturn and an increased need for emergency food assistance. The number of children and adults in need of food as a result of experiencing food insecurity has significantly increased
•More than one in three client households are experiencing very low food security-or hunger-a 54 percent increase in the number of households compared to four years ago
•Hunger in America 2010 collected quantitative and qualitative feedback from 61,000 face-to-face in-depth interviews with people seeking emergency food assistance and more than 37,000 agency surveys, making this study the largest, most-comprehensive ever conducted on domestic hunger