Food Insecurity In Texas

Food insecurity is not having reliable access to a sufficient amount of food to enjoy an active and healthy life. Hunger is a feeling of discomfort caused by the lack of food. Hunger would be difficult to measure, thus food insecurity is used to offer an accepted method for measuring food deprivation (Feeding Texas, n.d.). Food insecurity is a major issue in Texas. Texas ranks second highest nationally in total number of food insecure individuals (Camp, 2015). Texas also has a higher food insecure rate than the national average (Camp, 2015). People are embarrassed to talk about it and some fail to realize the lifelong negative effects the lack of nutrition can have. Those who do seek government assistance sometimes don’t qualify or don’t receive

Inevitably, food insecurity tends to be a never ending cycle. Often a constant battle of deciding whether to eat or pay the bills. A big misconception is the idea that simply because some low income families receive government assistance, they should be fine. On the contrary, many families who receive government assistance such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) still do not have enough, and therefore are food insecure. Another problem is that if one does not meet the requirements to receive public assistance they must rely on food banks and soup kitchens for sustenance. Also, it is not only single parents who are food insecure, but two employed parent households with low income, who at the end of the day can’t seem to make ends meet. Furthermore, some people assume that those who receive any form of government assistance are just cheating the system and are lazy, however ultimately those who seek it are really in need. I believe that just because they are asking for help does not mean they want to depend on welfare the rest of their lives, instead they are grasping an opportunity to help them get where they need to be both health and income wise. Clearly, I support government assistance programs, but I do believe they should be regulated in a different manner. For example, the

Farm bills provide financial support for commodity crops such as wheat, corn and soybeans (Condra, 2011). However, they provide little to no financial support for fruit and vegetable producers. It seems as if our government is supporting a subsidy program that excludes fruits and vegetables while encouraging us to consume more fruits and vegetables (Condra, 2011). Fruits and vegetables should be reasonably priced because they are essential and are not luxury goods. Furthermore, Texas receives the most farm subsidy of all fifty states (Andrzejewski, 2014). According to USDA, 81 percent of farms in Texas did not collect subsidy payments. If as a state we are receiving plenty of financial support, why is it mostly going to commodity crops? In my opinion, fruit and vegetable producers should receive fair subsidy to be able to sell their products at a more reasonable price while still profiting regularly. Consuming fruits and vegetables most definitely should not be viewed as a privilege. They are a necessity in growth and development and in leading a long healthy