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Food Insecurity Prevalent In St. Louis, Throughout The Country

Flickr | USACEpublicaffairs | file photo

The number of people who do not have enough food in the United States is a serious problem.

Information from the United States Department of Agriculture in 2011 shows:

  • 50.1 million people in the United States live in food insecure households
  • 33.5 million are adults
  • 16.7 million are children
  • 14.9% of all U.S. households are food insecure

Host Don Marsh talked with guests about the food crisis nationally as well as locally.
His guests were:

Among other things, they discussed the food crisis in St. Louis, misconceptions about those who need food assistance, the growth in the number of food banks, and the link between obesity and food insecurity.
Note

All of our guests agreed that the term “food insecurity” desensitizes the issue of hunger.  Food insecurity is a relatively new term.  In the early 2000s, the USDA, according to an article in the Washington Post, stopped using the term “hunger” because those who are food insecure may not be hungry.

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Alex is the executive producer of "St. Louis on the Air" at St. Louis Public Radio.
Mary Edwards is a producer for St. Louis Public Radio's broadcast program, "St. Louis Symphony."
Don Marsh served as host of St. Louis Public Radio’s “St. Louis on the Air" from 2005 to 2019, bringing discussions of significant topics to listeners' ears at noon Monday through Friday. Don has been an active journalist for 58 years in print, radio and television. He has won 12 Regional Emmy Awards for writing, reporting, and producing. He is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, was inducted into the St. Louis Media Hall of Fame in 2013, and named “Media Person of the Year” by the St. Louis Press Club in 2015. He has published three books: his most recent, “Coming of Age, Liver Spots and All: A Humorous Look at the Wonders of Getting Old,” “Flash Frames: Journey of a Journeyman Journalist” and “How to be Rude (Politely).” He holds an honorary Doctor of Arts and Letters degree from the University of Missouri-St. Louis.