WASHINGTON (October 25, 2023) The following is a statement from Minerva Delgado, director of coalitions and advocacy for the Alliance to End Hunger, in response to the United States Department of Agriculture’s report “Household Food Security in the United States in 2022”
“This dramatic increase in food insecurity is a damning indictment of our nation’s failure to ensure that every person and family — no matter who they are, where they live, or how much money they earn — has enough to eat.
Thanks to smart and compassionate investments like an expanded Child Tax Credit, enhanced WIC and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, and free school meals for all children, food insecurity stayed level during the worst public health crisis of our lifetimes. But rather than building on this progress, Congress allowed most of these supports to expire. This report illustrates the consequences of not following through, with certain populations — including households with children, families of color, and people with low or no incomes — affected most severely.
Reducing and eliminating hunger must always be national priorities. The Alliance to End Hunger urges Congress to fully fund programs like WIC to meet the growing caseloads and to close the wide gap that persists between those who are food insecure and those who receive nutrition assistance. As a nation, we must summon the political will to sustain proven investments in food security and nutrition.
This report ought to shock the conscience of every American. We hope it also shocks our policymakers into taking action.”
