One in Seven Children Live at Risk of Hunger in Wisconsin According to a new Feeding America Report

49,835 Children Under the Age of Five are Food Insecure

Milwaukee, WI- One in seven young children live on the brink of hunger in Wisconsin, according to a new report issued today by Feeding America. Child Food Insecurity in the United States 2005 – 2007, states that 3.5 million American children, ages five and under are food insecure. The report includes the first ever state-by-state analysis of early childhood hunger, using data collected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The report, funded by ConAgra Foods Foundation, also found that food insecurity among all children (persons less than 18 years of age) decreased in Wisconsin when compared to USDA data collected between 2003 – 2005. More than 366,000 children in Wisconsin are food insecure- unable to consistently access adequate amounts of nutritious food that is necessary for a healthy life.

“The first three years of life are the most critical period of brain growth and development. Child hunger causes physical and mental impairment that may never be reversed,” said researcher John Cook, Ph.D., of the Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine, a nationally-recognized expert on child hunger, who conducted the analysis. “Child hunger also creates tremendous costs that are completely unavoidable. There is no better investment in a prosperous future than investing in ending childhood hunger.”

The states with the highest rate of food insecure children under five years are:

The states with the highest rates of food insecure children under the age of 18 are:

Child Food Insecurity in the United States 2005 – 2007, analyzes data collected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) over a three-year period. The USDA has collected data on domestic food insecurity since 1995, but has not analyzed it to determine the specific number of children living in food insecure households by state.

The state-by-state study was sponsored by the ConAgra Foods Foundation, as part of its “Nourish Today, Flourish Tomorrow” program which focused on child hunger and nutrition education. ConAgra Foods is a major donor to Feeding America, whose network of food banks and food rescue organizations serves 25 million Americans every year.

The ConAgra Foods Foundation program is the largest corporate initiative solely dedicated to fighting hunger through Feeding America. ConAgra Foods Foundation also granted 167 trucks to member food banks in order to help with the transportation of donated food. They have provided grants to open 257 Kids Cafes, which are after-school programs that provide a hot meal in a safe, child-friendly environment for children in need nationwide.”

The full report is available at www.feedingamerica.org.

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235,000 people in eastern Wisconsin rely on food supplied by America’s Second Harvest of Wisconsin each year. The food bank is the largest, private, non-profit distributor of food in the state. Second Harvest Food Bank distributes nearly 11 million pounds of food annually to 1,100 food pantries, meal programs and shelters throughout eastern Wisconsin. Second Harvest Food Bank is affiliated with Feeding America, formerly named America’s Second Harvest, which is consistently ranked as one of the most efficient charities, out of the country’s 100 largest charities, by Forbes magazine. Since 1982, America’s Second Harvest of Wisconsin has distributed more than 200 million pounds of food. To learn more about hunger in Wisconsin, log onto www.secondharvestwi.org.