Food Insecurity Prevalence Across Diverse Sites During COVID-19: A Year of Comprehensive Data

Authors

Meredith T. Niles, University of Vermont
Francesco Acciai, Arizona State University
Deanne Allegro, Auburn University, Montgomery
Alyssa Beavers, Wayne State University
Emily H. Belarmino, University of Vermont
Farryl Bertmann, University of Vermont
Erin Biehl, Johns Hopkins University
Barrett P. Brenton, Binghamton University--SUNY
James Buszkiewicz, University of Washington
Brittney N. Cavaliere, FoodShare Institute
Young Cho, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Eric Clark, University of Vermont
Lauren Clay, D'Youville College
Kathryn Coakley, University of New Mexico
Jeanne Coffin-Schmitt, Cornell University
Sarah M. Collier, University of Washington
Casey Coombs, Utah State University
Marcelle Dougan, San Jose State University
Anne Dressel, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Adam Drewnowski, University of Washington
Tom Evans, University of Arizona
Beth Feingold, University at Albany, State University of New York
Kathryn J. Fiorella, Cornell University
Katie Funderburk, Auburn University
Preety Gadhoke, St. John's University
Diana Gonzales-Pacheco, University of New Mexico
Amelia Greiner Safi, Cornell University
Sen Gu, St. John's University
Karla Hanson, Cornell University
Amy Harley, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Kaitlyn Harper, Johns Hopkins University
Alan Ismach, University of Washington
Anna L. Josephson, University of Arizona
Linnea Laestadius, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Heidi Leblanc, Utah State University
Laura R. Lewis, Washington State University
Michelle Litton, Wayne State University
Katie S. Martin, FoodShare Institute
John Mazzeo, DePaul University
Scott Merrill, University of Vermont
Roni Neff, Johns Hopkins University
Esther Nguyen, University of Washington
Punam Ohri-Vaachaspati, Arizona State University
Abigail Orbe, FoodShare Institute
Jennifer J. Otten, University of Washington
Sondra Parmer, Auburn University
Salome Pemberton, CUNY Hunter College
Giselle Pignotti, San Jose State University
Zain Al Abdeen Qusair, DePaul University
Victoria Rivkina, DePaul University
Joelle Robinson, Johns Hopkins University
Stephanie Rogus, New Mexico State University
Chelsea M. Rose, University of Washington
Saloumeh Sadeghzadeh, Binghamton University--SUNY
Mateja R. Savoie- Roskos, Utah State University
Rachel Schattman, University of Maine, Orono
Brinda Sivaramarkrishnan, Tacoma Community College
McKenna Voorhees, Utah State University
Kate Yerxa, University of Maine, Orono
Rachel Zack, Greater Boston Food Bank

Document Type

Report

Publication Date

3-2021

Abstract

Key Findings

1. NFACT includes 18 study sites in 15 states as well as a national poll, collectively representing a sample size of more than 26,000 people. Some sites have implemented multiple survey rounds, here we report results from 22 separate surveys conducted during the year since the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020.
2. 18 out of 19 surveys in 14 sites with data for before and since the pandemic began found an increase in food insecurity since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic as compared to before the pandemic.
3. In nearly all surveys (18/19) that measured food insecurity both before and during the pandemic, more Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) were classified as food insecure during the pandemic as compared to before it began.
4. Prevalence of food insecurity for BIPOC respondents was higher than the overall population in the majority of surveys (19/20) sampling a general population.
5. In almost all surveys (21/22), the prevalence of food insecurity for households with children was higher than the overall prevalence of food insecurity.
6. Food insecurity prevalence was higher for households experiencing a negative job impact during the pandemic (i.e. job loss, furlough, reduction in hours) in nearly all surveys and study sites (21/22).
7. Food insecurity prevalence in most sites was significantly higher before COVID-19 than estimates from that time period. Reporting a percent change between pre and during COVID-19 prevalence may provide additional information about the rate of change in food insecurity since the start of the pandemic, which absolute prevalence of food insecurity may not capture.
8. Results highlight consistent trends in food insecurity outcomes since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, across diverse study sites, methodological approaches, and time.

Recommended Citation

Niles, Meredith T.; Acciai, Francesco; Allegro, Deanne; Beavers, Alyssa; Belarmino, Emily H.; Bertmann, Farryl; Biehl, Erin; Brenton, Barrett P.; Buszkiewicz, James; Cavaliere, Brittney N.; Cho, Young; Clark, Eric; Clay, Lauren; Coakley, Kathryn; Coffin-Schmitt, Jeanne; Collier, Sarah M.; Coombs, Casey; Dougan, Marcelle; Dressel, Anne; Drewnowski, Adam; Evans, Tom; Feingold, Beth; Fiorella, Kathryn J.; Funderburk, Katie; Gadhoke, Preety; Gonzales-Pacheco, Diana; Safi, Amelia Greiner; Gu, Sen; Hanson, Karla; Harley, Amy; Harper, Kaitlyn; Ismach, Alan; Josephson, Anna L.; Laestadius, Linnea; Leblanc, Heidi; Lewis, Laura R.; Litton, Michelle; Martin, Katie S.; Mazzeo, John; Merrill, Scott; Neff, Roni; Nguyen, Esther; Ohri-Vaachaspati, Punam; Orbe, Abigail; Otten, Jennifer J.; Parmer, Sondra; Pemberton, Salome; Pignotti, Giselle; Al Abdeen Qusair, Zain; Rivkina, Victoria; Robinson, Joelle; Rogus, Stephanie; Rose, Chelsea M.; Sadeghzadeh, Saloumeh; Savoie- Roskos, Mateja R.; Schattman, Rachel; Sivaramarkrishnan, Brinda; Voorhees, McKenna; Yerxa, Kate; and Zack, Rachel, "Food Insecurity Prevalence Across Diverse Sites During COVID-19: A Year of Comprehensive Data" (2021). Publications, Issue Briefs, Reports, Etc. 1.
https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/covid-mhd-nys-pubs-and-reports/1

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