The USDA indicates that in 2010 there were above 17 million households in the US (out of about 115 million households total) that were food insecure, and had trouble getting enough food on a regular basis. Only 59% of those households, however, received Food Stamps, WIC or School lunches, the three largest US food subsidy programs that make up the bulk of US nutritional supplementation programs. Which means that nearly half of all households were either receiving no support despite food insecurity, or relying on food pantries, soup kitchens and other resources.
One of the most significant things that has happened in the last 10 years is that food has become unaffordable to many Americans. This is astonishing, because we pay less of our income to food than almost anyone in the world or in human history. Meanwhile, more and more Americans need food subsidies to get to the end of the month – one in every 7, and one in every 3 school children. Very few people seem to realize how fundamentally America has changed as food subsidies have become basic. And still, nearly half the households that need help are not getting it.
The sea change in relationship to food that is occuring is truly radical – we’re aware of the change that led to more obesity than hunger in the US. Now what we’re seeing is obesity *AND* food insecurity together, the one reinforcing the other, as the cheapest calories are the least healthy and the knowledge of food insecurity drives people to eat as much as possible when food is present.
Meanwhile, for a billion people worldwide, as the ties between oil and agriculture draw closer so does the spectre of starvation. What is happening with food is perhaps the clearest canary in our coal mine.