Resources: Hunger

Background Paper - Childhood Hunger: A Time to Act

Bread for the World; March, 2010, 4 pages.

Hunger advocates throughout the country have become increasingly concerned about children as poverty and unemployment rates continue to rise. Even before the economic recession, children were at greater risk of hunger—in fact, households with children are about twice as likely to experience hunger. This background paper outlines hunger statistics, the Child Nutrition Program, and its place in a larger program to alleviate the root of child hunger: poverty.   

Interfaith Statement on Childhood Nutrition

24 Religious denominations, faith-based service agencies, and faith-based advocacy organizations. Housing Colorado; January, 2010; 3 pages.

Our shared scriptures teach us that we have a moral responsibility to feed the hungry; science tells us that access to adequate and nutritious food is necessary for all people to reach their God-given potential. Yet millions in the United States live on the brink of hunger. Nearly one in four children lives in a household that struggles to put food on the table.  This letter speaks to issues surrounding the reauthorization of the federal Child Nutrition Program. 1) current statistics related to Colorado’s rental and homeownership markets, and funding levels from the federal stimulus package; 2) reasons our most vulnerable citizens face the greatest affordability challenges, and  3)   action steps for improving housing opportunities in Colorado.

Increased Money for Food Stamps Has Helped Colorado Families
and Boosted the Economy.

Colorado Fiscal Policy Institute; June, 2010; 4 pages.

In the throes of the Great Recession, the federal Recovery Act of 2009 bolstered food stamps in Colorado with a two-year, $180 million increase in funding. That additional money provides much-needed food to families, as well as a healthy economic boost to local economies. Once spent, the additional $180 million for food will generate an estimated $221 million in economic activity and some 1,508 jobs statewide as dollars spent in grocery stores work their way through other parts of the economy. All this is in addition to normal food stamp benefits resource includes clear, concise reports on topics including: Status of Rental and Homeownership; Colorado Foreclosure Impacts; Spectrum of Housing Need, Other Factors Impacting Affordability; Impacts on Colorado Children: Regional Issues; New Opportunities in Green-building; State and Federal Funding Issues; and the Colorado Housing Investment Fund.

The Food Trust, and the University of Colorado; Winter, 2009, 16 pages.

This report was written to ensure that all people live in communities that have access to safe, healthy and affordable food. A key goal of this report is to stimulate the development of supermarkets in lower- and moderate-income urban and rural neighborhoods across the state.

Poverty rates among Colorado’s children are on a steep incline, with recent data showing an 85% increase since 2000 and 2006.3 Coupled with this trend, more Colorado households suffer from higher levels of hunger (food insecurity) compared to the United States as a whole.5 One explanation for higher rates of food insecurity in Colorado is the high number of areas without supermarket access (sometimes termed food deserts). Research demonstrates that rural residents living without sufficient healthy food access, such as those in Colorado’s rural communities, actually pay more for food due to lack of competitive pricing from larger markets and transportation costs to reach the stores.5 Residents of areas with inadequate access to healthy foods are forced to shop in convenience stores and gas stations that generally do not offer healthy, fresh foods. In fact, according to Income, Education and Obesity: A Closer Look at Inequities in Colorado’s Obesity Problem, only a quarter of Colorado’s adults eat five or more fresh fruits or vegetables each week. 

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A Picture of Poverty

Denver Agency for Human Rights and Community Relations; February, 2010; 51 pages.

Poverty is defined as “ the lack of the means of providing material needs or comforts.” The Federal government has a formula using an individual or family’s levels of income as the means of defining poverty. Poverty, however, is more than a definition of formulas and data. Poverty affects human lives. Poverty discourages hope and encourages despair. Poverty is a lived experience; an experience that creates obstacles for accessing basic human rights such as adequate food, housing, education, healthcare, employment, as well as adequate wages.

We hope that this picture of poverty will enhance your understanding of the important work that lies ahead for us if we are to get serious about addressing the challenges facing future generations. The recommendations included in this report present opportunities for all of us to play an important role in eliminating the experience of poverty for hundreds of children, families, and individuals in Denver. Their future depends on our actions today.

report was written to ensure that all people live in communities that have access to safe, healthy and affordable food. A key goal of this report is to stimulate the development of supermarkets in lower- and moderate-income urban and rural neighborhoods across the state.