The national food crisis | CarePortal
The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, has disrupted lives across the nation. As we try to recover even a semblance of pre-virus normalcy, there’s one group of people who are easy to overlook in the midst of the chaos — the food insecure.
While the effects of COVID-19 will be felt the most in Latin America and West and Central Africa**, there are millions of children in the United States who have the potential to be devastated by food insecurity, too. Recent research shows that food insecurity in the U.S. is skyrocketing, with 40 percent of households with mothers and children under age 12 experiencing food insecurity. Food banks are experiencing record-breaking visitors, and grocery prices are rising across the country***. As unemployment spreads, household incomes are at risk of dropping, making groceries even more difficult to afford.
Before the pandemic, the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provided more than 20 million free and nearly two million reduced price school lunches to children in need*. As the U.S. scrambles to plan for the new school year coming up in the fall, there remains a chance that students may not physically return to the classroom. Millions of young students may not have a school lunch provided each day and may go without food at all.
Now, more than ever, we must provide a counter-surge of care to combat the national food crisis affecting our nation’s most vulnerable. In a response to the pandemic, CarePortal created the Disaster Relief feature to mitigate food, home essentials and housing insecurities for the most vulnerable children and families.
*https://schoolnutrition.org/aboutschoolmeals/schoolmealtrendsstats/
***https://www.csis.org/analysis/covid-19-and-us-food-system
Help us ensure no child goes to bed hungry. Share CarePortal with your church to get the enrollment process started and start serving those affected by COVID-19.
