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. 2021 Mar;43(1):153-161.
doi: 10.1002/aepp.13100. Epub 2020 Oct 12.

Food Insecurity during COVID-19

Craig Gundersen, Monica Hake, Adam Dewey, Emily Engelhard

Food Insecurity during COVID-19

Craig Gundersen et al. Appl Econ Perspect Policy. 2021 Mar.

Abstract

For a decade, Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap (MMG) has provided sub-state-level estimates of food insecurity for both the full population and for children. Along with being extensively used by food banks, it is widely used by state and local governments to help plan responses to food insecurity in their communities. In this paper, we describe the methods underpinning MMG, detail the approach Feeding America has used to make projections about the geography of food insecurity in 2020, and how food insecurity rates may have changed due to COVID-19 since 2018. We project an increase of 17 million Americans who are food insecure in 2020 but this aggregate increase masks substantial geographic variation found in MMG.

Keywords: COVID‐19; I31; Map the Meal Gap; Q18; food insecurity; hunger; poverty.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Estimates of Food Insecurity Rates for the Full Population by County, 2018Notes: These results are based on imputations derived from the 2009 to 2018 December Supplements of the Current Population Survey and the 2014 to 2018 American Community Survey. [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
Figure 2
Figure 2
Estimates of Food Insecurity Rates for Children by County, 2018Notes: These results are based on imputations derived from the 2009 to 2018 December Supplements of the Current Population Survey and the 2014 to 2018 American Community Survey. [Color figure can be viewed at wileyonlinelibrary.com]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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