A team of experts are projecting that after a steep increase in 2020, food insecurity rates will dip in 2021. But behind this is a racial gap – rates for Black Americans will remain stubbornly high.
Food production in the US is heavily concentrated in the hands of a small number of large agribusiness companies. That's been good for shareholders, but not for consumers.
U.S. reliance on food assistance is rising during the coronavirus pandemic as more people grapple with economic hardship.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
The number of people assisted by food banks had been growing over the two decades before the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, these nonprofits are facing even more demand.
Despite help from the government and charities, the number of food-insecure kids is rising.
NurPhoto/Getty Images
The boxes and bags people get from food pantries contain healthier food than you might suspect.
The philanthropist is giving away billions of dollars quickly to help people like these Floridians seeking donated food.
Paul Hennessy/NurPhoto via Getty Images
By not attaching any strings to the money, championing representation and generally taking care to respect nonprofit leaders, she's following five best practices.
People in Los Angeles picked up boxes containing nutritious food in April 2020 as food insecurity surged.
AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill
Not having enough to eat is a major public health concern, not only because it causes hunger and distress, but also because it’s linked to poor nutrition and unstable diet patterns.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shops at a Metro earlier this year before dropping the items in a bin destined for a food bank.
Adam Scotti/The Prime Minister's Office
The federal government's response to the scourge of food insecurity must involve a lot more than just encouraging Canadians to donate canned goods. It must honour Canadians' right to food.
Concerns about having enough to eat are worsening among college students during the pandemic. This could ultimately affect how many finish school, two scholars argue.
Volunteers prepare meals for food banks on the floor of the Bell Centre in Montréal in May 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz
Food insecurity is income insecurity. After COVID-19, we must no longer tolerate the inequities of corporate charity and the stigma associated with relying on society's leftovers for those in need.
Fast-food restaurants can be comforting places, but when they saturate communities, they crowd out healthy food sources and leave residents less nourished.
Volunteers distributing food in Valley Stream, New York.
AP Photo/Mary Altaffer
Food pantries, the providers of services to the homeless and similar organizations now face enormous challenges.
The 100 days of the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the strengths and weaknesses of our food system, including the treatment of migrant labourers.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette
COVID-19 has given society a teachable moment, and we should now establish the policies, programs and technologies to ensure our food system becomes stronger, more resilient and more equitable.
Boxes wait to be filled with provisions at The Daily Bread Food Bank warehouse in Toronto.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
The ability of food banks to meet the needs of food insecure Canadians has plummeted just when it is needed most. But food banks have never been able to address the reason people are going hungry.
The Food Foundation now estimates at least three million people in the UK depend on food banks.
HASPhotos
The government is focusing on the market to feed the UK but to avoid long-term risks and short-term emergencies a UK food plan is needed now
A person holds a sign through the sunroof of a car in support of health-care workers outside St. Paul’s Hospital in Vancouver, on April 5, 2020.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting everyone to some degree, and many people are looking for ways to help others. Here are some ways people can contribute to the response effort.