Map the Meal Gap: Child Food Insecurity 2011

A new study released by Northern Illinois Food Bank and Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger relief organization reveals that 22.4 percent of children under the age of 18 are struggling with hunger in the 13 counties Northern Illinois Food Bank serves. The study, Map the Meal Gap: Child Food Insecurity 2011 , is the first time such localized data has been available.  The study also reveals that there are children struggling with hunger in every county in America. Nationally, while one in six Americans overall is food insecure, the rate for children is much higher: nearly one in four children is food insecure.

• Twelve of Northern Illinois Food Bank’s 13 counties had child food insecurity rates at or above 20 percent with Winnebago County reaching 30 percent.
• 56 percent of children struggling with hunger in NIFB's service area are not eligible for assistance from federal nutrition programs like Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), free or reduced-price school meals, and others.
• Click here to view the interactive map.

By providing additional details about the face of child food insecurity at the county level, Map the Meal Gap: Child Food Insecurity 2011 will enable food banks, the community based agencies they serve and policy makers to redefine approaches in addressing needs of hungry children and their families and develop more effective policy solutions. This research is supported by ConAgra Foods Foundation and is based on Map the Meal Gap 2011: Food Insecurity Estimates at the County Level, supported by the Howard G. Buffett Foundation and Nielsen.