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Roadrunner Food Bank

CONTACT: Sonya Warwick

Direct: 505-349-8682

Cell: 505-269-4775

ONE IN FOUR CHILDREN AT RISK FOR HUNGER IN NM

Over 23% of Children under Five are Food Insecure

Albuquerque, NM - May 7, 2009 – Nearly one in four young children live on the brink of hunger in New Mexico according to a new report issued by Feeding America.

Child Food Insecurity in the United States: 2005 – 2007, states that 3.5 million American children, ages five and under, are food insecure.  The analysis includes the first ever state-by-state analysis of early childhood hunger, using data collected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

More than 98,000 children under 18 in New Mexico are food insecure – unable to consistently access adequate amounts of nutritious food that is necessary for a healthy life. 

“The first three years of life are the most critical period of brain growth and development. Child hunger causes physical and mental impairment that may never be reversed,” said researcher John Cook, Ph.D., of the Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine, a nationally-recognized expert on child hunger, who conducted the analysis. ”Child hunger also creates tremendous costs that are completely unavoidable. There is no better investment in a prosperous future than investing in ending childhood hunger”

“Children in New Mexico shouldn’t have to worry about when they will have food to eat. Our youngest and most vulnerable children are facing a setback that could affect their entire life simply for lack of access to food.  Along with three other states, New Mexico ranks fourth in the nation of food insecure children under 5.  We will continue to fight hunger in New Mexico, but more help is still necessary,” said Melody Wattenbarger, executive director of Roadrunner Food Bank.

The report, funded with a grant from the ConAgra Foods Foundation, also found that food insecurity among all children (persons less than 18 years of age) decreased in New Mexico from 21.79% to 19.2%, when compared to USDA data collected between 2003 and 2005.

Wattenbarger continued, “The study shows a slight improvement for New Mexico children under 18, but the time frame the study covers isn’t reflective of the current state of our economy.  Our agencies are continuing to report vast increases of individuals and families who need access to food assistance programs.  Some of the figures we are receiving are as high as 50%. And, we barely missed being in the top 10 for children under 18 by two tenths…just behind North Carolina.”

The states with the highest rates of food insecure children under 5 years of age are:

The states with the highest rates of food insecure children under the age of 18 are:

Child Food Insecurity in the United States: 2005 – 2007, analyzes data collected by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service (ERS) over a three-year period.  The USDA has collected data on domestic food insecurity since 1995, but has not analyzed it to determine the specific number of children living in food insecure households by state. 

The state-by-state study was sponsored by the ConAgra Foods Foundation, as part of its “Nourish Today, Flourish Tomorrow” program which focused on child hunger and nutrition education.

For detailed information about the report, please visit at www.feedingamerica.org.  For more information about Roadrunner Food Bank, please visit www.rrfb.org.

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Roadrunner Food Bank of New Mexico is New Mexico’s largest non-profit organization dedicated to ending hunger.  In 2008, Roadrunner Food Bank distributed more than 16 million pounds of food through a statewide network of nearly 600 partner agencies and six regional food banks.  In New Mexico, Roadrunner Food Bank is the only member of Feeding America (formerly known as America's Second Harvest - the Nation's Food Bank Network).  As the second hungriest state in the nation, Roadrunner Food Bank and our affiliated agencies serve more than 240,000 children and adults throughout the state every year.

For more information about Roadrunner Food Bank of New Mexico, please visit the website at www.rrfb.org or call 247-2052.