Arkansas Ranks 3rd in Food Insecurity, Resources Assist Residents
Resources in northwest Arkansas, including an on-campus food pantry and off-campus organizations, are working to combat food insecurity after the most recent U.S. Census ranked the state third for overall population food insecurity.
Resources in northwest Arkansas are working to combat food insecurity after the most recent U.S. Census ranked the state third for overall population food insecurity.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as, “a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy lifestyle.” Feeding America’s 2017 Map the Meal Gap study found that the food insecurity rate in Washington County is 14.4 percent, meaning more than 32,000 people are food insecure in the county.
Fayetteville and UA students are not an exception. The Jane B. Gearhart Full Circle Food Pantry on campus was established to combat student, staff and faculty food insecurity, Full Circle chair Jon Mahaffey said.
Thirty-eight percent of undergraduate students are food insecure; 47 percent of graduate students are food insecure, Mahaffey said.
“If you’re a graduate student and you have a scholarship, usually that’s the only funding that you have,” said Alexis Skinner, volunteer coordinator at the Full Circle Food Pantry. “So you tend to be in a lot more situations where you face food insecurity.”
Several resources, such as LifeSource International, also are working to fight food insecurity outside of the UofA. The most recent census also found that Arkansas is ranked first in the nation for both elderly and childhood food insecurity.
“We get a lot of seniors who are on fixed incomes, so they come to the pantry once a month and that’s the only way they can stretch their budget,” said Coletta Patterson, the LifeSource International development director.
“A lot of working families,” she said, “are barely getting by; a lot of single parents as well, and quite a few veterans and homeless.”
Both organizations are run entirely on donations and rely on volunteers to help them serve those who use food pantries.
“The pantry is open for anyone who’s ever in a tight spot or needs food,” Patterson said.
The Full Circle Food Pantry is open 11a.m.-3p.m. Mondays, 3-5p.m. Wednesdays, and 10a.m.-2p.m Fridays at 324 Stadium Drive,. during the academic school year to all students and faculty with a university ID.
LifeSource International is open from 8:30-11a.m. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays at 600 S. School Ave., and require an ID as well as basic contact information. Clients get three to four days worth of food, and can only use the service once every 31 days, Patterson said.