A recent study shows Louisiana continues to have one of the highest levels of food insecurity in the country. Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America says more than half a million Louisianans, including one in five children, struggle with hunger.
“Hunger in Louisiana and in America is not about food access, it’s about affordability. When people just don’t earn enough to pay for their rent, to pay for their childcare, to pay for their gas to get to work, they don’t have enough money left over for food,” said Berg.
While the pandemic highlighted food insecurity during a surge in unemployment Berg says hunger in the Bayou State has been an ongoing issue due to low wages and inadequate safety net programs in the state.
“And even though there are tens of millions of Americans who were hungry before the pandemic, they were sort of whitewashed of the picture and once formally middle-class people became in trouble during the pandemic all the sudden somehow hunger was legitimate,” said Berg.
Berg says it’s ironic that a state known for its culinary leads the nation in hunger and despite what some might say hunger is a political and a partisan issue.
“And people can say they are against hunger all they want, they can do turkey giveaways, but if they oppose raising the minimum wage, if they oppose increasing the cash food safety net for low-income people, we need to be clear they’re pro-hunger,” said Berg.
Berg says the 67% drop in food insufficiency in Louisiana coincided with the massive boost in federal food and cash aid.
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