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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2009 > May > 07 > Entry
Ohio ranks 3rd in US for hunger among young kids
A new national study ranks Ohio third in the nation when it comes to the percentage of children under 5 who are likely “food insecure” because they don’t have consistent access to enough nutritious food.
The study found that 23.8 percent of Ohio children under 5, more than 170,000, are on the brink of hunger. Only Louisiana and North Carolina ranked higher on the hungry kids scale.
Ohio ranks 16th in the nation when it comes to food insecurity for children under 18.
“In any given week, 207,000 different Ohioans receive emergency food assistance,” said Lisa Hamler-Fugitt, executive director of the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks. “Hunger continues to be at the center of the lives of large numbers of Ohioans, with nearly one in three Ohioans lives in a household that doesn’t earn enough to pay for housing, food, health care and other necessities.”
The report, Child Food Insecurity in the United States: 2005 - 2007, found that 3.5 million American children, ages five and under, are food insecure.
Hamler-Fugitt said although the new data is cause for concern, what is even more alarming is that the data predates the current recession, which already is causing dramatic increases in demand at the state’s food pantries and soup kitchens.
“Without question, the current economy is causing unprecedented strain on the emergency food network,” she said.
The Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks represents 12 foodbanks and 3,000 member charities including food pantries, soup kitchens and shelters, which serve more than 1.8 million Ohioans and distribute more than 97 million pounds of groceries annually.
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Comments
By mom of 2
May 11, 2009 2:04 PM | Link to this
I have to say this is sad. I myself used to be a single parent needing assistance to feed my 2 kids. my husband left us and shortly after, my son got cancer. My job downsized and I was left with nothing. Some people do truly have circumstances that require more assistance. Why should I have been judged by some of you who have posted saying that I wasted my food stamps or that my kids dont deserve to eat. I did end up getting a great job, but in the interim to that we squabbled and barely made it. Dont judge until you have had to live off of nothingBy George
May 7, 2009 6:13 PM | Link to this
Chris2, If you want to help the poor vote Republican. Really. Democrats claim to be for the little guy and they usually get away with it. Unfortunately their policies have proven over the last 40 years to make poverty WORSE.By Chris2
May 7, 2009 5:47 PM | Link to this
We are the richest country in the world and our kids are going with out food. It makes me ashamed of my country to read this kind of stuff in the news. Our kids are the future of our world and we are letting them down. Is there anything I can do to help end this hunger? I’m willing to help.By jjr
May 7, 2009 3:11 PM | Link to this
The government will give you food stamps but it gives a very short list of foods you can’t buy. As long it’s not hot or alcohol it’s up for grabs. The kids are only hungry because Mom went nuts the first week and bought stupid stuff. Food pantrys are for the last week of the month or the first week if the mother didn’t turn in her paperwork to be recertified. Bad nutrition is the fault of the poor mothers whose kids’ only pleasure in life is the first week of the moth when they can eat anything they want.By Phil
May 7, 2009 2:20 PM | Link to this
Why do I care, because those same starving kids could be islamist extremists tomorrow. I’d rather exert influence over them now. It’s not just about the food, ut’s about the influence.By Who cares?
May 7, 2009 2:04 PM | Link to this
Why do we care anything about starving children in some other country. Fix what is on your doorstep before you try to fix the world. Food stamps turn into STEAKS for DRUG DEALERS. Ask your cashier.By jen
May 7, 2009 1:07 PM | Link to this
i am disabled & what i recieve isn’t nearly enough. now how does my child deserve to be looked down upon for being on welfare? many are still hungery.By George
May 7, 2009 12:54 PM | Link to this
Not so fast. It is no surprise that the details of what this “study” interprets as “food insecurity” are conveniently left out. I suspect their definition is so laughable that even they are too embarrassed to use the word hungry. What we have here is another “study” probably payed for with taxpayer dollars, trying to convince us that we need to hand over more tax dollars to help the “less fortunate”. The reality is that democrat politicians have created a welfare system (to secure votes) that is so generous that many actually suffer from obesity!By Phil
May 7, 2009 12:29 PM | Link to this
First, those kids in Africa are starving and not ‘food insecure’. The only bloated bellies we have in the US belong to the 20% of kids who are obese and the 2/3 adults who are oevereight. G Give me a break!By Ann
May 7, 2009 11:56 AM | Link to this
Ditto - My2centsBy My2cents
May 7, 2009 11:38 AM | Link to this
It is sad in this day and age that we can ship hundreds of pounds of food to Africa and lord knows where else but we can’t keep our kids here in the USA fed!! Sick!!