Hunger And Poverty In America Essay

1764 Words8 Pages

Given there is enough food in the world to feed every person it's heartbreaking to see major cities struggling to feed their citizens. There is an overwhelming amount of people who are considered hungry and malnourished. This problem goes above and beyond just major cities. Many countries deal with hunger but America is the main focus. Hunger and malnutrition in large cities are major problems, however, many organizations are helping to alleviate them. The amount of money and income greatly impact how citizens and families get food. According to the article “Hunger and Poverty in America” published by Food Research and Action Center, “Median household income declined by 2.9 percent, from $69,600 in 2019 to $67,500 in 2020. This is the first …show more content…

A high food density means the food has a high level of beneficial nutrients compared to calories. America has a lot of valuable options when it comes to foods to pick from. After these items are picked, some items of food are not eaten, causing them to be wasted. The magazine titled "Fighting Food Waste." published by New Scientist states, “Including inedible parts, the average amount of total food wasted per capita across all three cities was 3.5 pounds per person per week.” (par. 6). These numbers are rapidly increasing. Wasted food is not only devastating to the ones in need but it then gets pilled up in landfills. This makes further problems for workers and the environment. To decrease the amount of food wasted, people have invented some ways to preserve fresh food. According to an article called “Food Processing.”, published by the editors of Encyclopedia, “A number of food-processing innovations have even resulted in new products, such as concentrated fruit juices, freeze-dried coffee, and instant foods” (par. 2). In addition, many Americans have been freezing, canning, and using fermentation to make food have a longer shelf life. Many urban areas are characterized by a lack of access to essential services and resources, such as healthy and affordable food options. Furthermore, “Food in urban areas is generally plentiful and available in a variety of forms from fresh to prepared to package, in a number of …show more content…

Many states have staggering growth with people donating food to shelters. Food banks and food pantries are not the same. They have many similarities, each relies on the generosity of donors and volunteers to carry out their day-to-day operations. A food bank is an organization that provides warehousing and trucking to store and distribute large amounts of donated food. Typically, food banks provide food to food pantries and then food pantries provide food directly to clients. If visiting one of the partner food programs, food services are 100% free of cost. Unlike organizations running a partner food program, food banks may charge a shared maintenance fee per pound on some of the food that is offered. This fee helps food banks pay for sourcing, transporting, storing, and delivering your orders. The shared maintenance fee normally never exceeds 19 cents per pound (“Our Free” 6 and 7). Lots of organizations and pantries are only out to help during the hard times. Member food banks safely store and distribute food and groceries to local food programs like food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters. Local food programs then share that food and groceries with people facing hunger. Places people find food are mobile pantries, drive-thru pantries, senior food programs, SNAP application assistance, summer meal programs, BackPack programs, school pantry