From the desk of Jack Schnirman: The realities of food insecurity

The Island Now

In recognition of Thanksgiving and the holiday season, we must recommit ourselves to the mission of eradicating hunger on Long Island. One out of every eight New Yorkers experience food insecurity at times during the year because money or other resources limits their access to sufficient quantity—and quality—of food.

In Nassau County, thousands of families are struggling with an affordable housing crisis, escalating health care costs, stagnant wages, and a cost of living that continues to rise dramatically. That is why our team released an easy-to-understand fact sheet, so that we can push for data-driven solutions to this problem impacting thousands of people here in Nassau.

These issues dominate the affordability conservation, but for many people, food insecurity is one of the harshest realities.

The labels around food insecurity have been rooted in tired and inaccurate stereotypes that obstruct the ability of policymakers to develop data-driven solutions. Food insecurity is more widespread than many realize, and it must be treated as a real crisis facing thousands of working families, single mothers, college students, seniors, and children every day in Nassau County. It is an issue that is all intrusive and affects individuals from all walks of life—regardless of race, age, or gender.

Food insecurity also hides in plain sight in unexpected places, like our college campuses. This isn’t a knock on our local universities or the meal plans that students—or their parents—pay for. But it’s time to acknowledge that nutritional options are left wanting for too many young adults. If students can’t eat, they will have a tougher time graduating.

A recent City University of New York study estimated that nearly 40 percent of undergraduates experience some level of food insecurity. [i] This is prevalent enough that the State University of New York plans to provide access to food pantries on all campuses by the end of 2018. [ii] These numbers are stark, and they require attention to remedy this persistent problem.

As our research shows, in Nassau County 19,370 households receive our main nutritional resource: the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, or SNAP benefits.

  • 89 percent have at least one worker
  • 69 percent are at or above the poverty level
  • 5 percent have at least one person above the age of 60
  • 5 percent are white, 27.4 percent are black, 6.7 are Asian, and 21.9 percent are Hispanic or Latino of any race
  • 6 percent are households headed by single women
  • 5 percent have children

Not only does the SNAP program help families in need, this safety net program helps grow the economy and increase sales tax revenue in Nassau County. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, every $5 of food stamp benefits generates $9 in economic activity.

Access to resources—not just SNAP—is vital. Thousands of Long Islanders are trapped in food deserts, and it especially prevalent in communities of color. By definition, a food desert is an area that lacks access to healthful foods and grocery stores.

Using the USDA’s Food Access Research Atlas, our office identified 13 census tracts in Nassau County. Residents in parts of Glen Cove, Freeport, Hempstead, Long Beach, Roosevelt, East Meadow, and Uniondale are faced with limited options to purchase fresh food.

At the heart of the issue is the common thread that we all believe every person deserves access to food and water to survive. Working together, the first step to eradicating hunger is understanding the facts and confronting the problem head on.

Outside of a purely humanitarian issue, food insecurity also has negative impacts on Nassau County’s economy. If our workforce is hungry, we cannot expect them to perform at their potential. We cannot lift children out of poverty if they are hungry at home, and we lose sales tax revenue if the supply of groceries stores is not meeting demand in our neighborhoods.

Working families deserve to be treated with dignity, and they deserve to have the resources needed to thrive here in Nassau. As we gather for Thanksgiving and the holiday season across Long Island, let’s find innovative solutions to eliminate food insecurity, together.

[i] https://www.gc.cuny.edu/CUNY_GC/media/CUNY-Graduate-Center/PDF/Centers/Center%20for%20Human%20Environments/cunyfoodinsecurity.pdf

[ii] https://blog.suny.edu/2018/09/no-student-goes-hungry-how-food-insecurity-is-being-addressed-at-suny/

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