KENTUCKY HAS HIGHEST RATE OF FOOD INSECURITY AMONG OLDER ADULTS: Could worsen due to COVID-19 pandemic
Frankfort – May 21, 2020 – Today, as part of Older Americans Month, Feeding Kentucky announced the release of Hunger Among Adults Age 50-59 in 2018 and The State of Senior Hunger in America in 2018, two studies about food insecurity among older adults and seniors in the United States published by Feeding America®. The reports shed light on the extent to which food insecurity – or having limited access to enough nutritious food to live a healthy lifestyle – affects our neighbors age 50 and older.
The Hunger Among Adults Age 50-59 in 2018 report shows that for the second year in a row, Kentucky has the highest rate in the nation of food insecurity among older adults. Kentucky’s rate of food insecurity among adults age 50-59 was 17.3 percent in 2018, the most recent year for which data is available. According to The State of Senior Hunger in America in 2018, 6.9 percent of Kentucky seniors age 60 and older were food insecure in 2018. In the Louisville metro area, 10.3 percent of seniors were food insecure in 2018.
“After a lifetime of working and raising families, it is unacceptable that 5.3 million seniors face hunger and that many more may be vulnerable due to this pandemic,” said Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot. “As a nationwide network of 200 food banks, Feeding America is making significant investments in our senior hunger strategy to understand the barriers seniors face and support programs that increase access to nutritious food for seniors throughout the country.”
Other key findings include:
The current national rate of food insecurity among seniors (7.3 percent) remains substantially above the rate in 2007 (6.3 percent). If the current rate of senior food insecurity does not change, more than 8 million seniors in the United States could be food insecure by 2050.
Food insecurity does not impact all seniors equally. Black and Hispanic seniors experience food insecurity at higher rates than White and non-Hispanic seniors, respectively. Seniors with disabilities have food insecurity rates over twice as high as seniors without disabilities. Seniors who live with grandchildren are more likely to be food insecure than seniors who do not.
Adults age 50-59 who are unemployed or report a disability as the reason they are out of labor force are significantly more likely to experience food insecurity compared to older adults who are employed or retired.
“Even before COVID-19 struck, too many older adults and senior citizens in Kentucky were facing hunger after decades of hard work,” said Feeding Kentucky Executive Director Tamara Sandberg. “It is especially troubling to see so many Kentuckians aged 50-59 who are struggling to put on the table instead of saving for their retirement years – a situation that we know has been exacerbated by the pandemic.”
The Lift A Life Novak Family Foundation recently awarded Feeding Kentucky a $35,000.00 grant to address the increased need for food assistance among senior citizens during the pandemic. Funds will be used to support collaborative efforts across the commonwealth to deliver emergency food boxes to senior citizens’ homes.
“The current pandemic reveals that we must do more to creatively combat the troubling food insecurity that exists among our growing senior population,” said Ashley Butler Novak, Executive Director of the Lift a Life Novak Family Foundation. “We are honored to partner with feeding Kentucky and their critical partners to bring much-needed food directly to the homes of our senior citizens.”
The studies were conducted by researchers Dr. James P. Ziliak, Director of the Center for Poverty Research at the University of Kentucky, and Dr. Craig Gundersen and is the source for national-, state- and metro-level information about food insecurity among seniors age 60 and older. The full reports can be found here.
Join the conversation about senior hunger on social media using #SolveSeniorHunger.
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Contact
Tamara Sandberg
Tamara@FeedingKY.org
859-358-6719 (mobile)
502-699-2656 (office)
About Feeding Kentucky
Feeding Kentucky is comprised of seven Feeding America food banks that reach all 120 counties of Kentucky and serve an estimated one in seven of all Kentuckians annually. Last year, its members distributed 72 million meals in partnership with more than 800 charitable feeding agencies such as pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community, visit FeedingKy.org.
About Feeding America
Feeding America® is the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States. Through a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and meal programs, we provide meals to more than 40 million people each year. Feeding America also supports programs that prevent food waste and improve food security among the people we serve; educates the public about the problem of hunger; and advocates for legislation that protects people from going hungry.