by Ashley Baughman

New York State has the third highest number of food insecure children in the US according to new analysis of USDA food insecurity data — behind only California and Texas. Approximately 668,000 children ages 0 to17 are food insecure in New York, meaning that their family has difficulty accessing enough food for all family members to have an active and healthy lifestyle because of a lack of resources.

Although these numbers highlight the gravity of childhood hunger in New York, they do not come close to providing the full picture. Throughout the state, 844,000 children live below poverty ($18,000 for a family of three) and 1.7 million live below 200 percent of the poverty level (approximately $37,000 for a family of three). Research on living costs shows that families need an income of at least 200 percent of poverty to meet basic needs. And in New York City, where living costs are high, families need an income of 250 percent of poverty. Still, poverty among children is expected to get much worse. The Economic Policy Institute estimates that as a result of the recession and rising unemployment, the US child poverty rate could increase 50 percent by next year.

Food insecurity measures are also likely to under-represent the difficulty people experience affording food. Because the data only considers those who are not able to access enough food, people who rely on soup kitchens, food pantries and government benefits such as food stamps to ensure their family has enough to eat may not be counted.

To find out more about childhood hunger in New York and the Food Bank’s efforts to combat this problem, take a look at past Children & Youth posts on Bank on It.