FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 16, 2024
Contact: Wiley Norvell, wnorvell@rubenstein.com
No Kid Hungry New York Reacts to City and State Budget Release as Child Hunger Rises Across the State
NEW YORK, NY—With child hunger rising across New York, the proposed State and City budgets represent urgent opportunities to help families grapple with inflation and the loss of pandemic-era support that helped put food on the table.
In response to today’s proposals by Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams, Rachel Sabella, Director of No Kid Hungry New York, released the following statement:
“Hunger is on the rise. And we need every level of government—federal, state and local—to do more. We’re heartened that Governor Hochul’s budget takes up that call, directing new funding to the Summer EBT program that will help families afford extra groceries when kids lose access to free school meals over the summertime. This will make an enormous difference in rural counties to big cities alike.
“While the City is facing a much more difficult budget this year, we’re deeply concerned that the $60-million cut to school nutrition programs first announced in November has not been rescinded. The City has restored numerous other cuts in recent days—many of them much larger than the one to school meals. We need the administration to reinstate this funding before parents and students feel the direct impact in school cafeterias all over the city.”
Documenting the Rise in Hunger:
As rising inflation has driven up grocery prices, families are struggling more than ever to afford essential staples. No Kid Hungry’s 2023 poll showed 2 in 5 New York families experiencing a symptom of food insecurity like skipping meals or eating less, and nearly 3 in 4 New Yorkers reported that it had become harder to afford groceries last year than in 2022.
Last fall, the USDA Economic Research Service released their annual report on household food security in the U.S. that showed an alarming rise in the number of kids that could face hunger. The newest data reveals that in 2022, a stunning 18.5% — nearly 1 in 5 children — lived in food insecure households, jumping significantly from 12.8% in 2021. New York has a history of following this national trend.
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About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids could face hunger this year. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty. Join us at NoKidHungry.org.