This was written by staff at the nonprofit newsroom EdSource. It was republished by The Mendocino Voice in partnership with EdSource to bring relevant education news to Mendocino County readers. Learn more about EdSource here.
Nearly half of parents of young children in California — 47% — say they struggle with food insecurity. That’s higher than anything that’s been recorded since Stanford’s RAPID Survey Project began surveying parents of children under 6 in July 2024 about food insecurity.
The RAPID Survey Project considers a family food insecure if a survey respondent identifies with two or more of these experiences developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture:
- The food that we bought just didn’t last, and we didn’t have money to get more.
- We couldn’t afford to eat balanced meals.
- Did you or other adults in your household ever cut the size of your meal or skip meals because there wasn’t enough money for food?
- If yes, how often did this happen?
- Did you ever eat less than you felt you should because there wasn’t enough money for food?
- Were you ever hungry but didn’t eat because there wasn’t enough money for food?
Over the course of the survey, an average of 32% of surveyed California parents experienced food insecurity, according to those guidelines. That jumped to 47% in January.
The survey also collected comments from parents who were food insecure, who described inflation and how it is affecting families.
“As a single parent caring for two children, accessing food is difficult. I’m dollars short of qualifying for CalFresh. I’m having to starve myself so my children can eat,” an anonymous parent in Sacramento County said.
This article first appeared in EdSource here.
A more correct title: Parents Say They Lack Income To Raise Their Family.
Dave, the foreign troll, comes to stir the pot but offers nothing more. While Russia loses a major war they don’t need to wage and China censors all media and doesn’t allow free access to the internet, Dave has a good job working for those governments and feeds his family through keyboard disinformation, pretending to be a Mendocino resident. It’s a good life for Dave.
Jack’s hitting on the Wacky Tobacky a little late today.