At first glance it is easy to make the connection between hunger and agriculture – after all, our food comes from farms, so if there is hunger there must be something wrong with our farming practices, right?  However the nuances of this web of relationships are more complex and meaningful than meets the eye.  From the selective subsidies in the Farm Bill to poor working conditions and pay for farm workers to the consolidation of “Big Ag”, the way we have been producing our food…

To Plan… 

The folks over at Rainier Valley Food Bank are showing us just how important planning is to this challenge.  The Executive Director of the food bank, Sam Osborne, writes that although he is a thrifty shopper and a practical cook, the “very thought of shopping for food on a budget is giving me the willies”. Follow Sam as he gets over his shopping-on-a-budget phobia and finds a way to spend only $18 a day for his family of three.…

The Hunger-Obesity Paradox

It is hard for many to believe that there is a hunger problem in America when the same population that is hungry is also often excessively overweight.  This paradox forces us to look at hunger in a different way: not starving, but food insecure.  This means that nearly 50 million people in America have at some point been unsure where their next meal is coming from, don’t have enough money to buy the basics and pay rent and utilities, or have trouble…

Why focus on hunger?

As we go through our daily routines, living, working, and playing in a community as beautiful and abundant as Seattle and King County, it’s hard to think that anyone here, or in our great country, can possibly be going hungry – but it’s true.  Often an invisible problem, hunger and food insecurity affects 1 in 6 Americans – that’s 49 million people (Source).  Right here in King County 13% of our population is food insecure and 1 in 5…

This post was written by Anisa J. Khaleel, Community Outreach Specialist/AmeriCorps at WithinReach

For over two decades, WithinReach, a statewide non-profit, has helped Washington families take steps towards healthier lives by connecting them with health and food resources while promoting health education and disease prevention among vulnerable populations. Two years ago WithinReach partnered with the United Way of King County to build the Bridge to Basics program – a volunteer effort that trains community members in public benefits eligibility and places them…

A little over a month ago, me and my co-AmeriCorps VISTA, Katherine, visited Providence Regina House food bank near White Center to supervise our Bridge to Basics volunteers, talk to food bank clients, and get those in need in touch with public benefits such as food stamps.  It was their annual Thanksgiving distribution and they were busy making sure clients were set up with enough potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry to celebrate the holiday with their families.  Turkeys were in high demand and not…

Hundreds of thousands of people are talking about it.  Countless books and articles have been written on the subject.  It intrigues millions, from writers, filmmakers, and activists to parents, educators, and students.  We all think about it at least three times a day…

What could it be? It’s FOOD of course!  Not only food, but food justice and sustainability.  In recent years Americans have seen a rising food movement that is concerned with the damaging effects of our industrial food system and promotes innovative change grounded…