Food assistance program Project Bread is working to find new approaches to dealing with hunger in Massachusetts after studies suggested more than 700,000 people in the state are struggling to put food on the table.
“In 2010, 10.8 percent of households in the state faced food insecurity, the highest recorded number since 1995,” said Project Bread representative Kate Sullivan in an email.
She said that unemployment is around 7 percent and many people are still recovering from the recession.
“In this economy, those who are blessed to have enough should think about how easily many people who were once middle-class have slipped economically,” Sullivan said. “Hunger is something no one should have to face alone.”
The income gap in the state also offers reasons for why some families are struggling this year. In the last decade, the number of “high paying technology jobs” has risen significantly as the number of labor jobs has declined, according to Project Bread’s study.
As a result, the study said, Massachusetts has one of the largest income gaps in the country.
“This income disparity can leave low-income communities even more food insecure,” Sullivan said.
Project Bread raises funds through activities such as the 2012 Walk for Hunger, which is scheduled for May 6, Sullivan said.
“Through The Walk for Hunger, the oldest continual pledge walk in the country, Project Bread provides millions of dollars each year in privately donated funds to over 453 emergency food programs in 129 communities statewide,” she said.
About 14.5 percent of households were food insecure at some point last year, according to the Department of Agriculture, and 5.4 percent of households had food insecurity in the more severe range.
Sullivan said that “food insecure” is a term used by the department to describe households who have “reduced the quality and quantity” due to a lack of money. “Food insecurity with hunger” describes families that are forced to skip meals and stay hungry, she said.
“It’s obvious that any kind of hunger is an urgent crisis for the person experiencing it,” Sullivan said.
She said that hunger could lead to even more health problems.
“When children are hungry, they are more susceptible to illnesses that prevent them from reaching their full potential, both physically and academically,” Sullivan said.
But the organization, Sullivan said, is not simply looking for a one-time fix for individual hunger, but for long-term solutions.
“The new thinking in hunger relief emphasizes community-based solutions, such as school food, SNAP, formerly the Food Stamps Program, community gardens, co-ops, nutrition classes, school gardens and farmers markets,” she said.
Boston University’s Student Food Rescue has been involved with Project Bread in the past, Sullivan said.
“Boston University students are busy but inventive,” Sullivan said. “We ask them to organize activities to fundraise both now and at the time of the next walk. Every dollar counts.”
At the BU Community Service Center, Student Food Rescue program managers Ernesto Botello and Eddy Ruddy are leading the on-campus fight against hunger in the state.
Students involved in the program are “helping feed the hungry during this holiday season by picking up excess food from restaurants and different establishments around the Boston area and delivering them to shelters, helping homes and pantries for distribution,” Botello, a Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences senior, said in an email.
“Being at BU we are in a privileged position to help others in need,” he said. “We have an ability to help. We should feel a need to give back to the community.”
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