The New Year is upon us! Many of us might think about what we’re going to do differently individually and make a resolution to change. I feel, we might also look back and think about how we might consider what we as a society might give some love to as a society and take action to change to help get people access to healthy, affordable food. 

Here’s my top five:

1. Support Affordable Housing: You might wonder why on earth I’m not even talking about food as the first action item. Hear me out. Many individuals who are struggling to eat, yet alone eat healthily, are having trouble paying for housing! Few are able to pay all cash for a place to live. Mortgage rates and rising prices of homes and apartments have priced many out of the market. That leaves renting for many. In many places, especially larger cities, rent is increasingly multiples more than what is considered affordable. Meanwhile, average rents are rising much higher than inflation in many parts of the country. People are becoming unhoused even while working multiple jobs because rent prices have been so dramatically higher than even a few years ago. And guess what else? If you are having a hard time paying rent, you are likely skimping on buying the most nutritious food. Instead, you are buying what you can afford, which tends to be less expensive, lower quality ultra-processed foods, or even skipping a few meals.
2. Support Administrative Support for Benefits: Did you know that many more people qualify for benefits than receive them? The bottleneck is often the lack of adequate staffing at administrative locations and communication about eligibility. Getting the benefits can literally be given out on a first come first serve basis. And many individuals, especially seniors and those with very young children, may have difficulty getting to offices applying or becoming aware that they are eligible. These are the very individuals most at risk for inadequate nutrition security! Many states have just announced they will roll out summer Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) payments, which are known to help reduce food insecurity in families with children. We previously reported on this here. We are hopeful that all states, including New York, will follow suit. Still, in New York, nearly $35 million in pandemic EBT payments are at risk of being forfeited. These are benefits that the federal government already designated to go to struggling families to help offset the cost of foods that they paid for when schools closed. Unfortunately, it is likely that many families may not even know how to access these benefits before time runs out on Dec 31. Having adequate support is essential to have the system functioning properly.
3. Support Inflation-adjusted, Realistic Benefits: We know that food insecurity went down for families during the COVID-19 emergency who received SNAP, formerly known as food stamps. In part, this was due to just a slight increase in the benefit. Now it’s back to just over $6/day for an individual to be able to eat. Taking away around $3/day has had a dramatic negative effect. And food insecurity has shot back up again. Having benefits tied to something akin to the Low-Cost Food Plan, instead of the Thrifty Food Plan, could help. There are so many individuals who are experiencing challenging economic life circumstances. Having benefit inflation adjusted, and tied to what can realistically be expected to feed individuals, is important.
4. Support Healthy Free School Meals for All: Government supports during the COVID-19 emergency also provided free meals for school children around the country. Finally, like reading and math books, school meals were provided for free to families. Even families that didn’t qualify for SNAP or other federal benefits were able to count on their children eating lunch, and often breakfast, at schools. And since the standards set by the Healthy, Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010, they could count on those meals adhering to some of the healthiest meal standards that most Americans eat. Those free meals got rolled back in fall 2022. Ever since, we have been seeing the disheartening effects on families and schools. With rising food inflation, families that didn’t qualify for SNAP increasing are also feeling the pain. They recognize it can be a struggle to keep their children fed. School districts are also seeing rising unpaid meal debt because they don’t turn away hungry children and many cannot afford to pay.
5. Recognize that “Bread and Butter” Issues Matter to Many: At the end of 2023, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is showing stock prices at record levels. Many economists are touting that the economy has been booming in its recovery since the pandemic. This may be how the top 2% of Americans feel. But the reality for the rest of the country is likely far from glowing. A lot of families are concerned about keeping their lights on and staying in their homes, along with their grocery bill and keeping their children fed more than their personal stock portfolio growth. Hint: a lot of folks not in the top 2% may not have a ‘stock portfolio.’  There are some basic things that people want to feel confident that they can do. Right now, that’s not happening. Historically, what do you think mattered the most to people?

Of course, there are other important things to keep in mind that are root causes of food insecurity, like failing to pay people fairly with livable wages and are critical. This is true for everyone from farm workers and farmers to all of the folks who we suddenly realized were essential to a functioning society during COVID. There are also deep-seated practices that keep people who can least afford it paying premiums for things, even goods and services at the local level as well as higher rates of interest compared with wealthier individuals. These issues and others likely involve more considered, targeted efforts. However, we know from many of the policy incentives that were in effect during COVID, that the above five items can be and should be addressed quickly.  

What can you do about it? Write your lawmakers in Congress to support these things in the Farm Bill. 

Also, consider supporting our work. We do this research to ensure people become more nutrition secure. It is made freely available, but it is not free to create.

Happy New Year! Also, consider supporting our work.

References

Cadenhead JW, McCarthy JE, Nguyen TT, Rodriguez M, Koch PA. Qualitative Study of Participation Facilitators and Barriers for Emergency School Meals and Pandemic Electronic Benefits (P-EBT) in an Urban Setting during COVID-19. Nutrients. 2022 Aug 16;14(16):3358.

— Jen Cadenhead, PhD, RDN