The number of people struggling to access enough food in the Wichita Falls Area Food Bank’s 12-county service area increased again, the WFAFB said in a media release.
New data shows food insecurity reached its highest level in four years.
“More families, seniors, and children are not receiving the nutrition needed to lead thriving, productive lives,” WFAFB CEO David O’Neil said in the media release. “Food inflation, limited job growth, and cuts to government funding have combined to increase food insecurity in North Texas by 26% over the past 4 years, reaching dangerously high levels that now affect 1 in 4 children.”
The food insecurity rate rose from 18.7% to 19.1%, according to the WFAFB community announcement citing Feeding America’s latest Map the Meal Gap study. The increase represents 1,160 additional food-insecure people over the past year and brings the total number of neighbors experiencing hunger across the service area to 42,910.
In Wichita County, 19.4% of residents are experiencing food insecurity, according to the announcement.
The Wichita Falls Area Food Bank said its service area now has the 20th-highest food insecurity rate among more than 200 Feeding America food banks nationwide.
The study also found that nearly half of people experiencing food insecurity in the region earn too much to qualify for federal nutrition assistance programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Four years of rising food insecurity
The latest findings mark the fourth consecutive year that the Wichita Falls Area Food Bank has seen an increase in food insecurity across its service area.
Food insecurity is generally defined as a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life.
The new data suggests that economic pressures continue to affect families throughout North Texas while many households facing hunger remain ineligible for federal food assistance programs.
An interactive map and county-level data are available through Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap project at map.feedingamerica.org.
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This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Hunger rates rise again across Wichita Falls food bank region
Reporting by Staff reports, Wichita Falls Times Record News / Wichita Falls Times Record News
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By Staff reports, Wichita Falls Times Record News | USA TODAY Network
