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The Face
of Hunger May Surprise You
In any given week, approximately 18,300 individuals receive food
assistance from our network of charitable food providers. In some
cases, they seek assistance as the result of an unexpected event
that puts tremendous stress on the family's budget, such as
job
loss or an illness. In most cases, however, the risk of hunger is
a persistent and long-term symptom of poverty.
The majority of households
that are at risk have incomes below the official federal poverty
level and nearly half include at least one employed adult. You may
be surprised to learn that more than half of the families at risk
in our community have at least one parent with a full or part-time
job. The modest income obtained from low-wage work does not guarantee
that a family will be able to make ends meet. Unfortunately, families
who are struggling financially must make impossible choices among
food, health care, utilities and rent.
Hunger does not discriminate; It strikes people
of every age, race, and ethnic group and has devastating, long-term
effects on children, families and senior citizens. A lack of adequate
nutrition seriously compromises children's ability to grow, learn,
and achieve at school.
Among the elderly and disabled, hunger can
exacerbate both short and long-term health problems and make it difficult
to recover from minor illnesses. For adults, poor nutrition can make
it difficult - if not impossible - to learn new skills and perform well
at their jobs. Without adequate nutritious food, too many low-income
and disadvantaged families, children and seniors living in southern
New Jersey, are missing essential building blocks for healthy and
productive lives.
Hunger in South Jersey
In 2006, in collaboration with America's Second Harvest, the nation's food bank network, the FBSJ interviewed more than 55,000 individuals
who were at risk of hunger and/or food insecurity. From those interviews, it was determined that in southern New Jersey, approximately 85,000 people are at risk of hunger. Of those...
• 70% [of those at risk] had incomes below the official federal poverty level during the previous month.
• 44% [of those at risk] choose between paying for food and paying their rent or mortgage.
• 45% [of those at risk] have to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities.
• 36% [of those at risk] are children and 8% are seniors.
For more details about hunger in southern New Jersey from the 2006 Hunger Study, check out the
local report.
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