University of Wisconsin - Extension

Hunger in the heartland? Unfortunately, yes. Even in America¿s Dairyland, more than 1 in 14 citizens are food insecure and the number is rising, according to a new study from the Wisconsin Food Security Consortium.

Food insecure households are those that express concern about not having sufficient food, or those that reduce the nutritional quality or size of meals, skip meals or experience hunger because of insufficient income, according to Kadi Row, University of Wisconsin-Extension food security specialist.

The Status Report on Hunger in Wisconsin indicates that, while Wisconsin fares better than the country as a whole, food insecure households are on the rise in our state. Coupled with that, several summaries from surveys of food pantries show 9- to 30-percent increases in the number of people served.

A recent UW-Extension survey found that close to half of food pantry clients have at least one worker in their household; more than 40 percent have children; and more than one-third are working-age adults with a disability or illness.

Row says Wisconsin and individual communities are responding to this issue in a variety of ways. There are a host of federal food resources that are designed to assist low-income families. Food stamps, WIC and reduced or free school meal programs are examples.

Yet according to the Report, only 51 percent of eligible low-income people in Wisconsin receive food stamps (the fourth lowest percentage in the nation), and Wisconsin has the lowest participation rate for students receiving school breakfast (of those who also receive school lunch).

¿The good news is that in both of these programs, participation rates are improving at a rate faster than the national average,¿ Row says.

The Status Report on Hunger in Wisconsin was compiled by the Wisconsin Food Security Consortium, a partnership of 20 government, business, community and university representatives dedicated to investigating the causes and status of hunger in our state, and recommending solutions to hunger and food insecurity. The Report can be viewed online at http://www.fighthungerwi.com">www.fighthungerwi.com.