More than a Quarter of Households with Children in Georgia Can’t Afford Enough Food
Print This PostAccording to a new report by the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), Georgia has the nation’s 16th highest rate of households with food hardship.
FRAC looked at rates of households with and without children in all states answering “yes” over the course of a year to the question, “Were there times over the past year when you did not have enough money to buy food that you or your family needed?”
26.8 percent of Georgia households with children answered yes.
The Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta Metropolitan Statistical Area was the 31st highest metro area in the nation with 26.4 percent for households with children. Georgia’s 4th Congressional District was the 37th highest congressional district with food hardship (32.6 percent) in households with children.
FRAC President Jim Weill said because so many households are struggling with hunger or food insecurity, this is not the time to make our safety net weaker. He said weakening key safety net programs will make hunger and malnutrition more common and deeper, increase fiscal deficits, further weaken the economy, and increase human suffering.
The data in this report show that states, cities, counties and school districts have to do a much better job using federally funded anti-hunger programs to reduce hunger. According to FRAC, reaching more people with these programs would translate to less hunger, healthier children, more federal dollars flowing into the state, more economic growth, and more jobs.
FRAC is a national organization working for more effective public and private policies to eradicate domestic hunger and under-nutrition. The rates are based on data through 2010.