The latest Department of Agriculture report on hunger in America, shows that the number of Americans that were hungry in 2008 rose to 14.6%. The report has been released annually since 1995. Rather than hunger, the USDA uses the term "food insecurity."
The number of Americans that have trouble putting enough food on the table shot spiked to a record 17 million households, the government reported on Monday. In 2007, 13 million households or 11.1% of Americans had trouble getting enough food.
The government said that about a third of these households had what the researchers called “very low food security.” In terms of the study, this means the households lacked so much money forced that members were forced to skip meals, cut portions or otherwise forgo food at some point in the year.
Meanwhile, the report stated, the other two-thirds had enough to eat, but only by eating cheaper and less varied foods. They also relied on government aid such as food stamps, or by visiting soup kitchens and food pantries.
Further unsettling was the number of households with children that were in the "very low food security range." This number incrased to 506,000, up from 323,000 the previous year.
President Obama responded to the report, saying more needs to be done in a statement released by the White House:
"My Administration is committed to reversing the trend of rising hunger. The first task is to restore job growth, which will help relieve the economic pressures that make it difficult for parents to put a square meal on the table each day. But we are also taking targeted steps to prevent Americans from experiencing hunger."
Written by Michael Santo
For HULIQ.com
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