Although the US is one of the most economically powerful countries in the world, looks like many of its inhabitants are experiencing food insecurity for the first time in their lives since the level of unemployment surged due to COVID-19.
According to the latest survey conducted by the market research company, OnePoll, four out of 10 Americans have faced food insecurity for the first time in their lives in 2020. Half of the interviewees admitted they had problems in affording food and 37% declared that they had to miss a meal themselves in order to feed their children since the COVID-19 pandemic erupted.
Moreover, 63% of those who faced food insecurity for the first time, were even not aware that they were experiencing the phenomena, which is defined as a household-level economic and social condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food, by the US Department of Agriculture. 60% of those affected by food insecurity indicated that their situation is now much worse than at the beginning of the pandemic due to many support programs having now expired including enhanced unemployment benefits and stimulus payments. Half of these have struggled to find enough food for their families and themselves.
Of course, some Americans faced food insecurity issues prior to the COVID-19 outbreak but the level of people now affected by this problem has significantly increased. It is estimated that in March 2020 about 35 million Americans, including 11 million children, did not have access to enough affordable food. The data from Feeding America, one of the biggest American non-profit food bank networks, indicates that before the outbreak America had the lowest level of food insecurity for two decades. However, in April 2020 the US recorded a 14.7% unemployment rate, a record high according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which led to over 50 million people including 17 million children being hit by food insecurity.
As a result of increasing unemployment, more and more people are in need of support from food banks which have now become overwhelmed. Not only is demand growing rapidly, food prices are also surging which makes their mission even more difficult. City Harvest, a New York-based food bank, spent $10 million buying food between March and November which is 50 times more than it normally spends during a year. Unfortunately, City Harvest is expecting a further growth in demand, especially in view of the fact that many federal programs that support the poor and unemployed expire in January, the Farmers to Families Food Boxes and the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance being amongst these.
The number of people in need will also increase because not everyone has turned to food banks and other organizations for help since they are not fully aware of how to access this aid or of any other potential help. Four out of five of the Americans polled indicated that they had a problem finding out how to receive support. Meanwhile, some people who have lost their jobs and who are struggling to find enough food are relying on their savings but when this resource runs out, turning to external help may prove inevitable for them too.
