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More than 35 Million of Americans Lived In Food Insecure Households in 2005 |
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The Food Research and Action Center: The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) announced that the food insecurity rates in the United States dropped somewhat in 2005, but more than 35 million people were still living in households considered food insecure. Today's release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's annual analysis of Census Bureau survey results follows five years of straight increases in the number of Americans living in households that were not able to afford the food they need. The number of people in the worst-off households (previously called "food insecure with hunger" and now called "very low food security" households) actually rose in 2005, from 10.7 to 10.8 million. "It is simply unacceptable that after years of economic growth, 35.1 million people in this country face a constant struggle against hunger," said Jim Weill, president of the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC). Millions of people don't have enough to feed themselves, their families or their children," said Jim Weill, president of the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC). The report also includes food insecurity rates for each state, using three-year averages to give a better estimate of the number of households experiencing food insecurity. "While the federal nutrition programs have been a bright spot in addressing hunger and connecting people to a healthy diet, we need to do more to increase their access to adequate food," continued Weill. "Each household has its own experience of what these numbers mean, from families having to decide between buying adequate food, keeping current on rent or heating their house to parents who skip meals so their children can eat," said Lynn Parker, FRAC's director of child nutrition programs.
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