52,000 plus residents in Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri identified as food insecure

Second Harvest Community Food Bank and Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, today released a landmark study, “Map the Meal Gap,” providing the first detailed look at the food budget needed by families struggling with hunger here in Northwest Missouri and Northeast Kansas each year – an estimated $21.1 million.

The study takes a look at ‘meals’ in a whole new way, using county-level data on food costs from the Nielsen Company to break down the food budget shortfall of our residents into an approximation of the meals missing from the tables of people at risk of hunger in Second Harvest ‘s service area each year.

According to the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey data analyzed as part of “Map the Meal Gap,” people struggling with hunger estimate they would need about $56 more each month on average during the months that they are food insecure to address the shortages in their food budget. On a county by county level, “Map the Meal Gap” shows that this shortfall locally represents an estimated 8.7 million meals on an annual basis.

“Map the Meal Gap” also provides critical information that has never been previously available -- food insecurity rates for Congressional District. Previously, food insecurity data was only available at the state level in the USDA’s annual report. The study further analyzes each district’s food insecure population to determine their income eligibility for federal nutrition assistance. This data has the potential to redefine the way service providers and policy makers address areas of need.

“This report confirms the scope and magnitude of the challenge faced by the many communities served by Second Harvest Community Food Bank,” said David Davenport, Executive Director, Second Harvest Community Food Bank. “Collectively, we must embrace the core belief that hunger, especially in the life of a child, is socially, economically and morally unacceptable and act on the belief as an advocate, donor and volunteer. In doing so, we take the first step towards closing the meal gap and improving the quality of life of all our neighbors, especially those most in need.”

‘“Map the Meal Gap” was also able to compare food costs across counties, showing for example Mercer County, MO to have among the highest food costs in Northwest Missouri and Northeast Kansas.

Although “Map the Meal Gap” showed that Livingston County, MO has some of the lowest food costs in the region, food insecurity was still among the highest.

Map the Meal Gap provides the following data for Northwest Missouri and Northeast Kansas in an interactive map format:

• The percentage of our local population who is food insecure.

• The percentage of the food insecure population in our area who qualify based on income for SNAP (Foods Stamps) and other federal nutrition programs.

• The percentage of the food insecure population in who do NOT qualify for federal nutrition programs and often must rely on charitable food assistance programs and who also need better wages and employment opportunities to help them meet their basic needs.

• The average price per meal in our area based on new research by the Nielsen Company.

The findings of “Map the Meal Gap” are based on statistics collected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Census Bureau, and food price data from the Nielsen Company. The study was supported by the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and Nielsen.

A summary of the findings, an interactive map of the United States, and the full report are available on Second Harvest's NEW blog site: http://www.ourcommunityfoodbank.org/blog_site. Statewide data can also be found at feedingmissouri.org.