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Phone: (417) 865-3411 O’Reilly Center for Hunger Relief Emergency Food Assistance Sites |
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Map the Meal Gap study
The Map the Meal Gap study provided information that has never before been available, including county-level food insecurity estimates by income categories and an estimate of the food budget shortfall that food insecure individuals report they experience. For several years, Ozarks Food Harvest has been receiving anecdotal evidence that more middle class families are visiting food pantries. This study confirmed that 16.9% of individuals—nearly 180,000—within Ozarks Food Harvest’s 28-county service area experience food insecurity. Of these people, 76% qualify for some form of government assistance, but unfortunately for families whose income is above $39,220, although they may have experienced other economic crises, no federal assistance is available. That is the case for 24% (42,689) of food insecure individuals and they are forced to rely on charitable support, such as Ozarks Food Harvest and its member agencies, in order to survive. The poorest counties with the greatest incidence of food insecurity in the region include the following:
Counties with a high percentage of food insecure people who do not qualify for federal assistance are listed below:
More information:
Map the Meal Gap: Child Food Insecurity An addendum to the Map the Meal Gap study focused on food insecurity rates of children and their access to government assistance programs. With the support from ConAgra Foods Foundation, Feeding America revealed that 28.2% (71,780) of southwest Missouri children face food insecurity. That’s 1 in 4 children—5% higher than the national average—who face uncertainty finding their next meal and may go to bed hungry. In Shannon County and Wright County, 38.6% and 35.8%, respectively, of all children worry about where their next meal will come from. Fortunately, many of these children eat free meals at school and their families receive SNAP (food stamps) and WIC benefits; however, nearly one-third of food insecure Ozarks children are not eligible. That means more than 21,000 Ozarks children must rely on charitable assistance, such as Ozarks Food Harvest, to eat their next meal. This study demonstrated that federal child nutrition programs are not currently reaching all the food insecure children across Ozarks Food Harvest’s service area. In Christian County and Greene County, 42% and 36%, respectively, of all hungry children do not qualify for any form of government assistance. Although hunger is harmful to any individual, it is particularly devastating to children. Their increased vulnerability and potential for long-term consequences makes this issue imperative to address. Food insecurity among children impacts cognitive development, school performance and has health consequences, including increased illness and higher associated health costs. Ozarks Food Harvest’s goal is to care for these children, break the cycle of poverty and improve their futures. More information:
Learn who is hungry. Check out the interactive map:
The findings of the Map the Meal Gap study has been supported by the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, the Nielson Company and the ConAgra Foods Foundation. Findings are based on statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the 2009 American Community Survey, and food price data from the Nielson Company. For information on how the Map the Meal Gap data was produced, please see the Data Explanation or view the full Technical Brief. For additional information, see Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap study or contact Denise Gibson, Development Director, or Cassie Hanson, Research Development Coordinator, at (417) 865-3411.
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Feeding America embarked on the Map the Meal Gap study to identify the need for food within each of the communities across the nation. The goal of this study was to provide a clearer picture of need in southwest Missouri in order to help Ozarks Food Harvest strategically plan for food assistance programs that best support Ozarkers in need.