Food Insecurity in the United States What’s For Dinner? Food Insecurity in the United States Introduction- Our topic is socioeconomic status and we are going to focus on food insecurity. Purpose of presentation – create awareness and empathy, not sympathy. All of us have gone through food simulation before and have reflected on that experience as part of our work to prepare this presentation.

The Facts Food Insecurity : The state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious, food. Shared definition of food insecurity Examples Medical bills, struggle with groceries and need to visit food pantry Qualify for food stamps, but they only last 3 weeks of the month. Make too much money to qualify for food stamps so you have to use food pantries. Losing job and need to find ways to feed your family.

The Facts Food Insecurity : 41.2 million Americans -28.3 million adults -5.4 million seniors -12.9 million children Food insecurity exists in every single county in the United States. 58% of food insecure Americans reside in households that earn more than 100% over the poverty line. Go through facts- 2017 stats from Feeding America Every county Lowest amount of food insecurity Grant County, Kansas- only 3% rate of food insecurity Highest amount is Jefferson County, Mississippi- 38% rate of food insecurity Brown County – 9.8% Menominee highest in Wisconsin at 17.5% Means that these people do not qualify for federal nutrition programs. feedingamerica.org

2018 WI Food Stamp Qualifications 2018 Federal Poverty Level 2018 WI Food Stamp Qualifications $12,140 for individuals $16,460 for a family of 2 $20,780 for a family of 3 $25,100 for a family of 4 $29,420 for a family of 5 $33,740 for a family of 6 $38,060 for a family of 7 $42,380 for a family of 8 $11,772 for individuals $15,936 for a family of 2 $20,100 for a family of 3 $24,252 for a family of 4 $28,416 for a family of 5 $32,580 for a family of 6 $36,732 for a family of 7 $40,896 for a family of 8 Graph shows 2018 annual incomes per family to qualify as impoverished and qualifying for food stamps. 58% that are over 100% of poverty level make at least double of these annual incomes, but are not even close to qualifying for food stamps. food-stamps.com/wisconsin/eligibility healthcare.gov/glossary/federal-poverty-level-FPL

Let’s Play A Game http://playspent.org Simulation of someone who has lost their job, has a family and needs to make decisions based on their current situation. - Simulation goes through 1 month You will have 10 minutes to work on the simulation. Feel free to start over and make different decisions. Make sure you pay attention to the balance on the left side of the screen as well and read through the informational pop ups to learn more about the impact of your decisions.

A Place At The Table As part of our research we realized that we have not been food insecure, so we found a documentary about different people and families who have faced food insecurity. The documentary was created in 2013.

Let’s Chat What is something surprising you have learned today by doing the simulation and watching parts of the documentary? Who have given food to a food shelter? Do you think about the types of food you are donating and how it will impact the health of the people consuming the food? Close your eyes and imagine someone who is hungry. What do they look like? Fact – food insecurity and obesity go hand in hand due to lack of affordable, healthy options.