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Rural Hunger and Access to Healthy Food – Resources

Selected recent or important resources focusing on Rural Hunger and Access to Healthy Food.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: Nebraska's Eligibility Decision
Details the benefits and eligibility requirements of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Offers statistics and demographics on households participating in Nebraska's SNAP. Highlights the effect inflation and the higher cost of food has on low-income populations. Makes recommendations for policymakers to consider when evaluating eligibility limits that affect the availability of food and safeguard against hunger for low-income households.
Author(s): Derrik Conard
Date: 01/2023
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Center for Rural Affairs
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No Kid Hungry 2023 Summer Meals Outreach Toolkit
A toolkit that provides sample communications in both English and Spanish for social media, flyers, postcards, and more to spread awareness about summer meal programs. Includes information on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) implementation guidance for non-congregate meal service in rural areas.
Date: 2023
Type: Website
Sponsoring organization: No Kid Hungry
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Food Insecurity in the Rural United States: An Examination of Struggles and Coping Mechanisms to Feed a Family among Households with a Low-Income
Analyzes the barriers and strategies of low-income rural families around food insecurity. Reports on interviews with 153 primary grocery shoppers about their experiences related to affordability and adequacy of meals, difficulty in obtaining food and managing household food needs, and more. Includes demographic information about participants as well as selected quotes relating to their food insecurity experiences.
Author(s): Carmen Byker Shanks, Lauri Andress, Annie Hardison-Moody, et al.
Citation: Nutrients, 14(24), 5250
Date: 12/2022
Type: Document
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Trends in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participation Rates: Fiscal Year 2016 to Fiscal Year 2020
Presents information on eligibility for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) alongside actual participation in SNAP. Presents information on households, children, elderly, refugees, low-income families, persons with disabilities, and other groups enrolled in the program. Tables A.3 and B.3 show rural versus urban participation.
Additional links: Summary
Author(s): Alma Vigil
Date: 12/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: USDA Food and Nutrition Service
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QuickStats: Percentage of Adults Aged ≥18 Years Living in Families That Were Food-Insecure in the Past 30 Days, by Family Income and Urbanicity — National Health Interview Survey, United States, 2021
Bar chart showing the percent of adults in food insecure families overall, in urban areas, and in rural areas, with breakdowns by income level for those under the federal poverty level (FPL), between 100-199% of the FPL, and 200% or more of the FPL.
Citation: MMWR (Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report), 71(48), 1539
Date: 12/2022
Type: Chart/Graph
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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Save the Children Action Network (SCAN) Rural Voters National Survey Key Findings
Presentation slides showing results of a poll of 1,006 rural and small town voters, conducted by the bipartisan research team of New Bridge Strategy and Hart Research. Explores issues including food insecurity, inflation, and availability of child care and early childhood education.
Additional links: Polling Memo
Date: 11/2022
Type: Presentation Slides
Sponsoring organization: Save the Children Action Network
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Supporting Rural Grocery Stores Across the North Central Region
Webinar recording describing 3 programs that work to support rural grocery stores as locations for food security as well as community and economic vitality. Discusses programming and strategies to support rural groceries. Transcript available below description.
Date: 11/2022
Type: Video/Multimedia
Sponsoring organization: North Central Regional Center for Rural Development
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Biden-Harris Administration National Strategy on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health
Provides an overview of the current hunger, nutrition, and health landscape in the United States. Outlines federal actions to address hunger and diet-related diseases and disparities across five pillars: improving food access and affordability, integrating nutrition and health, empowering consumers to make and have access to healthy food choices, supporting physical activity for all, and enhancing nutrition and food security research.
Date: 09/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: The White House
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Informing the White House Conference: Ambitious, Actionable Recommendations to End Hunger, Advance Nutrition, and Improve Health in the United States
Provides food security and nutrition policy recommendations on issues such as federal nutrition programs, public health and nutrition education, healthcare, research and science, business and innovation, and federal coordination. Includes data on health disparities as they relate to food access. Rural considerations throughout the report.
Additional links: Executive Summary
Author(s): Task Force on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health
Date: 08/2022
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Food Systems for the Future, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs, Tufts University: Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, World Central Kitchen
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How a Desert Town Is Growing Its Way to Better Health
Highlights the work of a community garden program to address food insecurity in Huachuca City, Arizona, by offering fresh produce to the rural desert community through partnerships with the local library and senior center. Discusses the development of the garden, how it responded to challenges related to water, and the efforts of the program to encourage healthy lifestyle through community and youth programming.
Author(s): Elizabeth Bellizzi
Date: 07/2022
Type: Document
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Last Updated: 1/29/2024