Food Security

For Many Georgians, both homeless and housed, not having enough healthy and nutritious food to eat is painfully common.  Many must resort to using emergency food resources such as soup kitchens, food pantries and food banks or even begging or scavenging for food. Although these food resources can maintain a minimum caloric intake to sustain life they often times do not provide quality, healthy and nutritious foods. Often homeless families and individuals must decide whether to spend their financial resources on good nutritious food or just keeping a roof over their heads. Having an adequate, dependable and safe source of food is a fundamental need. For many homeless families and individuals this necessity of life has become an abstract concept and a day-to-day struggle. Food security is a process whereby community-based programs can work in tandem with a strong Federal nutrition safety net and emergency food assistance programs to move people from homelessness and poverty to self-sufficiency and food security.

What Is Food Security?

Food security for a families and individuals means access at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life. Food security includes at a minimum:

• The ready availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods.
• Assured ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways (that is, without resorting to emergency food supplies, scavenging, stealing, or other coping strategies).

Food Insecurity?

Food insecurity is limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways.

 

Food Security Links and Resources

• USDA Food Security in the US
• Community Food Security Coalition
• National Center On Family Homelessness : Food Security and Homeless Children
• Food Stamps and Other Nutrition Programs
• Georgia Farmer’s Markets
• Georgia School Nutrition Program
• Georgia Food Banks
• Georgia Food Pantries